Time Child: Metamorphosis
by DanniFielding
Summary: Sequel to The Time Child Trilogy. After the surprise turn of events following Manhattan, Danni is a changed woman and the Doctor couldn't be happier. But with the mystery of Clara, will they ever work out what happened to her and why she spent the beginning of her life in another universe? 11/OC
1. Prologue

_Hello! Welcome to my new story, Time Child: Metamorphosis. Named by my lovely friend, Flamesandpain on tumblr because I really had no idea what to call it. Thank you, sweetie!_

_Most likely won't make any sense unless you read the first three Time Childs in the original trilogy, which are all on my profile, so go see, drop me a review or two if you're feeling generous._

_But, yeah, enjoy ^_^_

_~0~0~0~_

The room was bright white. White walls, white floor, white sheets on the bed and a white wooden door across from her. That was the first thing she noticed as she shot up, panting like she'd been running for her life, every part of her aching. Her head fell forward as she tried to take slower breaths, her blonde hair falling in front of her face.

_Blonde?_

She reached up, grasping at the short, blonde locks that fell in front of her face. Why was she blonde? She'd not been blonde since she and Mels had decided she needed to dye her hair. She let go, shaking as she stared at the fingers that weren't hers. Slightly longer, slimmer and a shade paler than she remembered. What was going on? Where was she?

She turned swiftly on the bed she'd been lying on, her eyes blurry in her distress as her hearts beat a mile a minute. _Heart. _Not hearts, heart. Singular. She placed a hand on her chest to reassure herself, quickly moving it back in terror. She'd felt them. Two hearts beating under her ribs, she knew that sound and she knew how it felt.

"Theta?" She whimpered, terrified as she caught sight of her wrist. Her bare wrist, an angry burn where her manipulator should have been. Where was it? She looked up again at the room as it spun and stretched awkwardly around her. She rubbed her eyes, her hands feeling as foreign as they looked against her face, but her vision didn't clear.

"Theta?" She whimpered again, her voice sounding all wrong in her head. She tried to think back but her head spiked in pain and she hissed, grasping at her hair and squeezing her eyes shut. Everything was so bright, images and memories rushing through her head, nothing making any sense. She couldn't even remember her own name. The blonde hair was wrong, but why? She tried to grasp at the thoughts, but they flew away as quickly as they came.

She jumped down off the bed, landing on the floor quicker than she was used to, jarring her with the unexpected impact of longer legs. She spun, trying to work it out, still terrified because she couldn't remember where she was and why everything was wrong. So very wrong. Something metal crashed to the floor as she walked backwards into it and she spun again, alarmed.

"Theta!" She screamed, petrified and the door opened, a man with floppy brown hair and a concerned look on his face running in. Her Theta. She knew that, who was he though?

"Theta?" She whimpered and he nodded, reaching out to gently take her by her arms, "Why's everything so blurry?" She had a million questions to ask him, but for some reason that stuck out in her head and she'd asked it before she'd had the chance to change her mind. He reached into his jacket pocket and she jumped back in fright. He held up a long, metal object with a green tip, showing her.

"It's just my sonic screwdriver." He reassured her gently, "I'm just going to see what's wrong with your eyes, is that okay?" She nodded slowly but still jumped as it buzzed, the green light coming on for a moment before the end popped out. He brought it to his face, looking over it with a furrowed brow. He always looked so hot when he was thinking, "You have slight astigmatism in both eyes." He told her, popping the end in, "You need glasses." She shook her head.

"No I don't." She sniffled, "I've never needed glasses. I don't understand…" She reached over to him, taking hold of something solid and that was giving her a lot of comfort, "What's happening?" He pulled her up against him, her head still low enough to rest on his chest, but higher than it used to.

"I know it's scary." He replied gently, stroking her short blonde hair. It barely reached her shoulders, but it felt right as it ran through his fingers, "You regenerated." She started shaking, clinging to him, "I don't know why, but I'm working on it." He promised quickly, letting her go just slightly so he could catch her eyes, "But you're okay, Danni-Girl, I promise." He shot her a soft smile, hiding the mass of emotions he was actually feeling.

River had given him so much hope, he'd waited for what seemed like a lifetime for the TARDIS to bring Danni back from the Time War. Then she'd come through screaming, dying and he'd known that he was already too late to save her. She'd rambled, delirious with pain and the death that was taking her from him. Then she'd screamed again, golden energy he knew all too well bursting out of her and suddenly a new woman stood in her place. Blonde hair, slightly taller with piercing brown eyes. Nothing like his Danni-Girl but at the same time it was. He'd just managed to catch her as she'd passed out, her mouth falling open and a cloud of regeneration energy had floated out.

He had no idea what was going on, but he would thank everyone and everything he could think of that it had saved her life. She might have regenerated, but she was still there with him and he was going to keep her safe. The Doctor and his Danni-Girl, living a calm, boring but _safe_ life in the TARDIS together for the rest of time. He'd work out the rest later, but if he never knew he wouldn't care, because she was alive.

Danni caught sight of her arm again, an angry burn that shouldn't be there anymore almost glaring up at her. If she'd really regenerated, it should have gone, right? It was left when Koschei took the manip…

"Where's Koschei?" She asked in realisation. He shook his head once.

"I'm sorry." He told her.

"No." She exclaimed, "No, he promised he was right behind me!" She stepped back, ignoring the blurring around her, "I did not leave him there. Please tell me I didn't leave him behind!"

"You weren't in any state to do anything." He reassured her quickly, seeing her start to panic again, "I swear, you didn't do anything."

"You don't know that!" She screeched, "He saved me! There was a Dalek, and he shot it down." Her eyes went wide, "After you pushed me out of the TARDIS!" He took a step towards her but she stepped away, shaking her head, "You tried to kill me." She whispered, hurt and shaking because everything was so confusing. So many memories swam in her head, but she couldn't pin them down. He'd pushed her out of the TARDIS, she remembered that and she had to focus on it because everything else scared her more.

"No, no I didn't." He exclaimed, hands up as he stepped towards her, trying to show her he wasn't a threat but she stepped away from him again, "It wasn't like that!"

"It was!" She replied, "You hate me! I know you do, I remember that." She pointed at him, trying to hide her fear and confusion with anger, "I can't remember why, but I remember you hating me."

"No, of course I don't." He insisted desperately, "I could never hate you. Just… just sit down, regeneration is always disorientating…"

"I didn't regenerate!" She exclaimed angrily, "I can't, I'm human!" As if to completely betray her, another wave of energy wracked her body, causing her to cry out and stumble into his waiting arms. It rushed upwards until her jaw was forced open and a cloud of gold floated out. She watched it disappear into the air, "I am human, aren't I?" She whimpered.

"Partly." He broke to her gently, "I didn't want to do too many tests without you being awake, but you are still partly human." He watched her eyes darting around, trying to focus on anything even though he was sure she would have trouble seeing anything with any kind of focus. She then looked up at him with foreign brown eyes.

"What do I do?" She asked pleadingly and he smiled softly, brushing the front bangs from her face.

"Nothing." He reassured her, "I'm going to sort this out for you, I'm going to take care of everything, okay?" She nodded slowly, relieved.

"What about Koschei?" She asked hopefully and he placed a kiss on her head.

"Leave it all to me." He told her, letting her have the hope for the moment that he could save the other Time Lord. She let him lead her back to the bed, helping her up and tucking her in. He stroked her hair, as he looked over her, his overwhelming emotion still being joy at the fact she was in front of him, alive and well, "Sleep, my Danni-Girl. Everything else can wait."

"Okay." She whispered and closed her eyes. He stayed at her side as she fell into the sleep her body would probably need for a little while longer. Some regenerations were better than others, none of his had needed as much rest as his Tenth, but this current body hadn't needed any at all. He once knew of another Time Lord who'd slept for a whole year after regenerating.

Another Time Lord. She was a Time Lord. It may have only been partially, but it was more than her human part. Somehow that had been hidden from all of them, including herself, but there she was. She'd regenerated. She wasn't going anywhere. If they were careful, if he kept her from danger, they'd live the rest of eternity together.

He wasn't alone anymore.

_~0~0~0~_

Danni sat up slowly, alone and in the medi-bay once again but feeling much calmer she had compared to the last time. Everything had slotted into place whilst she'd dreamt of the blonde haired Time Lord she'd left behind. She couldn't remember much after she'd been shot, just Koschei telling her he'd be right behind her, then not being when she'd tried to grab him. She stepped onto the floor, still not quite used to the height difference but made her way to the door on steady legs. This didn't seem to be as hard as she thought it would be, her limbs felt like hers and so did her blurry vision.

As hard as she thought it would be… She stopped with her hand on the door handle. Maybe she was more disconnected than she'd originally thought as well. She was sure she should have been screaming, rocking back and forth at the very idea that she'd regenerated, that she wasn't human and that her parents must have basically lied to her throughout her entire life in the other universe. They must have either been Time Lords themselves, or she had to be adopted, right? There was a part of her brain screaming at that, but it seemed so far away she ignored it's sobbing voice, betrayed and hurt by the revelation. Another thought for another time, she guessed.

What was worrying her, though, was the sense of dread she felt over opening the door. Not over the fact she was about to go see the Doctor, feeling more herself than she had done the last time and fearing his reaction to her, but just seeing anyone at all. He had been so kind, but she didn't want to set him off again. Maybe she should wait for him to come to her.

No. That was stupid and she was stupid for thinking it. She threw the door open and stepped out into the hallway, immediately stopping. This wasn't right. The stainless steel, the arches… It looked just like the hallways in the TARDIS when she'd met Clara. She set off in a jog down the corridor, coming to a stop as she made it to the console room. Everything had changed. Everything was changing and the console room had changed. She shrunk back, clinging to the doorway.

"T-Theta?" She called out, the stutter in her voice making her feel ridiculous. She wasn't sure if he could hear her, but she really didn't want to move into the open room. Footsteps echoed through the air and then he appeared on the lower level, his eyes shining in the happiness at seeing her. Even she couldn't deny that he looked almost relieved, "Why's everything changed?" He spun on the spot, arms outstretched like he had done the first time she'd seen the new design.

"Do you like it?" He asked, "I thought we could do with a bit of a change." He rushed up the stairs and wrapped his arm around her waist, dragging her in despite her reluctance, "Can you see the writing on the rotors? I thought it was a nice touch, maybe I could teach you what they say. It's all very complicated, but I'm sure you'll understand." He helped her down the last stair, "And I added a few new interfaces in too." He rambled, pointing at a small whole in the top, "For example, _this_ one will take you to wherever you want to eat in the universe. You fancy some spaghetti, it'll take us to the best spaghetti in the universe." He looked up at her, looking for approval in his actions but she just seemed terrified, "And I'm throwing too much at you, aren't I?" He suggested sheepishly and she nodded her head.

"I've seen this before." She whispered, unsure why she couldn't seem to get the energy to talk any louder, "I shouldn't be here…"

"Of course you should." He reassured her before leaning in slightly, a knowing look on his face, "Have you seen yourself yet?" She shook her head, "Let's go, then."

"I don't want to." She explained quietly, pulling him to a stop as he tried to drag her to the wardrobe. He paused, frowning.

"Why not?" He asked and she blushed, her pale skin turning pink easily.

"Because you like red heads." She replied, sounding almost ashamed and he chuckled, shaking his head and cupping her cheeks.

"You are beautiful." He promised, "You've definitely swayed me to the blonde."

"You loved…" She started.

"I love you." He interrupted her, purposefully stressing to make his point, "Let me show you." She didn't reply, but nodded and he led her through the hallway to the wardrobe, where the TARDIS had placed a full length mirror ready. She slowly walked in front of it, eyes wide in amazement. She was slightly taller than she had been, slightly slimmer too but not by much. If anything, she was less curvy and she didn't think she'd had much to lose in that department. Her skin was paler, her hair blonde but not platinum blonde, just a shade darker. Her brown eyes were what called to her the most and were the things that had her pressing her hand against the mirror as she studied them.

"I have Koschei's eyes." She gasped, looking over her shoulder at the Doctor, who was watching her while wringing his hands nervously, "Is that normal?" He walked over, standing behind her and wrapping his arms around her waist so they were both in the mirror.

"We're shaped by the people who touch us the most." He explained quietly, taking on her low tone, "He meant a lot to you." She wanted to argue, but didn't feel like she should so she tugged at the blood-stained blue dress she was wearing.

"I don't think I like this anymore." She stated and he chuckled.

"We have an infinite wardrobe." He told her, "I'm sure we can find something together." She smiled, her hearts - _hearts_ – revelled in the knowledge he was trying to help her adjust. She was still feeling wary, she still didn't know what had happened after the Ponds had been lost, but she'd come to that when she was ready. And if he turned on her before then… well, she could deal with it then as well. For now, she needed the rock he was providing.

_~0~0~0~_

Danni threw open the TARDIS doors and gasped in delight, stepping out only slightly onto the platform the TARDIS had made in the clouds they were sat on. Down below her was a faint glow of light, not as much as if they'd been in the 20th or 21st century, but enough to be seen. Victorian London continued on below them, unaware of the Time Lord and the mystery he pulled to his side. He began pointing things out but she was still focusing on his new outfit.

Everything she'd picked had been black and white, be it shirts or jeans or suits, but she'd settled on a small, tight-fit polka dot tunic dress with an oversized white collar. A pair of tights, a small set of smart, black shoes and that had been it. Simple and not too different from her old taste, just a lot less colour than before. The Doctor, in contrast, had gone purple and incredibly smart. On the purple waistcoat he'd chosen sat the chain of a pocket watch, and even though he'd left it inside, there was a matching top hat. Not quite the outfit she'd seen his future self in, but she could see the evolution.

He looked magnificent, stunning as he always had done and now she had a pair of thin-framed glasses perched on her nose, she could see him perfectly.

They both knew they were hiding, running away from the real issues at hand, but for the moment they were content to stay where they were, watching over the Earth and just being together.

_~0~0~0~_

_Did you miss me? XD I couldn't leave you hanging a full month, now could I? _

_I needed a way to tell you that I've posted some Danni/Twelve drabbles and one Danni/Eleven drabbles on my Tumblr, and how better than to give you the prologue two weeks early!_

_So yeah, go read and follow because I've just been writing them off suggestions so you never know ;P_


	2. The Victorian Request

Danni looked up from her book, The Shining by Stephen King, as the door to the Entertainment room opened and the Doctor sauntered in, flopping down next to her. She smiled softly and went back to her reading. She'd not realised how much she'd like horror, in fact she was sure she'd hated it before. She pushed her glasses up her nose, she had been sure of a lot of things, now nothing seemed right. Her whole life had been turned upside down, and here she was reading like nothing had happened.

"Good book?" He asked, pushing the front cover up so he could see the title, "Ah, I've never read that one. Never found the time." She shut the book, shaking her head at his childishness, amused.

"I thought it'd be scarier." She admitted, "But I'm only a third through it, maybe it'll pick up." He smiled, stretching and putting his arm around her shoulders.

"Maybe you need to read it at night, while not watching the Simpsons." He teased, motioning to the cartoon currently on the screen. This body still liked the Simpsons, apparently.

"Yeah, maybe." She offered, shrugging out from underneath his touch and climbing off the sofa, rubbing her left arm with her right hand, "Do you think we could go out today?" She asked hopefully, "We haven't seen Madame Vastra since, well, since the last time we were here." She glanced at the door, unable to look at his hurt look, "We could get dressed up, it'd be really nice."

"Maybe tomorrow." He dismissed, crossing one leg over the other, "It's a bit chilly down there, and the doors are still squeaking. When they're fixed." She nodded slowly, glancing at the door again.

"I think I'm gonna go," She waved her book, "look for a better book, is that okay?" He nodded, a gentle smile on his face.

"Of course. I'll be here." He patted the sofa, "Watching the Simpsons."

"No you won't." She replied with a laugh, "The moment I'm gone you'll put Bill and Ted on, won't you?"

"I will not." He replied, acting indignant but secretly cursing himself for being so predictable. She shot him a pointed look.

"Of course you won't, sweetie." She humoured, loving his pout as she pushed the door open, "Try not to break anything this time." She warned before stepping into the hallway.

"I didn't break it last time." He called after her.

"Tell the TARDIS that!" Her voice floated through the door. He waited for a moment before the smile fell off his face and he fell back into the sofa, running his hand over his face tiredly. He'd scared her away, again, like an idiot. He really was a moron.

It had to have been a month since she'd mysteriously regenerated and they were still no closer to working out _why_. Scans showed she was still part human, maybe only a quarter or even a third, but she wasn't a full Time Lord, but they'd had no matches to anything beyond that, nothing could be tracked down to location, or even a time zone. They didn't know if she was adopted, or if one of her parents back in the old universe was Time Lord. He had a hunch it was because of her prolonged exposure to the Vortex, after all the same had happened to River after only being conceived in the Vortex and Danni had travelled through it unprotected for the last five years. But Danni was a fully grown adult, it was so much easy to mutate embryos than fully developed beings.

Basically, he had nothing, and it was incredibly frustrating.

He'd been spending the time noticing all the new things about the new Danni. How she suddenly seemed to love horror movies, but never found them scary. She preferred psychological-based films, but found ones based on gore boring. She wasn't much for talking anymore, preferring to listen but that just meant he could ramble to his hearts' content, knowing she was always listening and that she was never bored. Her love for bright colours had disappeared, but not her love for dresses. It was really fascinating learning the new Danni, seeing all of the old one but knowing he'd love the new one just as much, if not more.

Of course, she still flirted with him, which was nice. Well, until he'd touch her, anyway. That's where he'd gone wrong just now. He knew she was uncomfortable with him touching her, but he just wanted to hug and kiss her so much. Every moment of every day he couldn't believe she was still there with her, and he wanted her to know that. But he understood why she was wary of him. She'd told him she'd forgiven him, that she knew he hadn't meant to let her go out of the TARDIS doors, but that didn't change the fact he did and her life had been turned upside down due to his actions.

He glanced down at his hand, which had clenched on the arm of the sofa. He had to make it up to her, he had to make her feel safe so that she knew he'd never hurt her again. Maybe then they could go out for a small trip, but until then the TARDIS was the best place for them both.

_~0~0~0~_

Danni hadn't gone to the library, instead she'd headed to the console room, glancing behind her every moment as she headed to the doors. She stood in front of them, taking a few, deep breaths before she held her hand out to open the doors. She waivered as her fingers brushed the lock, the cold metal sending her hand back with a flutter of fingers.

Tomorrow, definitely tomorrow. She turned and headed back into the hallways, perhaps she'll try another Stephen King book.

_~0~0~0~_

Danni glanced behind her again as she headed to the TARDIS door again, worried she was going to get caught. Another two weeks had gone by, and at this point she was tired of his moaning about being bored. If he wasn't going to go outside on his own back, she'd have to drag him out herself.

It was actually really hard to do anything secretive on the TARDIS, it turned out. Just because she was an infinitely-sized time machine that could change shape whenever she felt like it, didn't stop the fact the Doctor wouldn't leave Danni alone if he could help it. Most of the time she wasn't complaining, although he did have a habit of trying to touch her when she was least expecting it, but when one was planning to run away, it made everything so much more difficult.

She wasn't being stupid about it, though. Oh no, she'd written him a lovely note and left it on the console in case he couldn't work out where she'd gone. She didn't want to go very far, anyway, not in the outfit she was wearing. A long, big black skirt with a corset top, accented with red panels down either side. She didn't think it would matter which body she was in, none of them were going to like corsets.

Thoughts like 'which body' would surprise her sometimes, coming out of nowhere and feeling so incredibly natural. Like her body was absolutely fine with replacing each cell and building her a new persona.

A slight pause, then she slipped out onto the cloud they were still parked on. If she'd timed it right, it should still be morning down below. She hitched the cumbersome skirt up and dashed over the cloud to the steel staircase, dashing down it before she changed her mind.

_~0~0~0~_

Commander Strax, Sontaran and butler, opened the door to the blonde-haired human person, stood in her dress and her hands clasped together. She did that silly thing humans do when they were happy, baring their teeth without the threat of attack.

"Strax." Danni greeted with a smile, "It's me, Danni." At his still slightly confused look, she sighed, "Danni Fielding?" Nope, nothing, "The Doctor's _Wife?"_

"Oh, right." He replied, finally getting the hint and she shook her head to herself, "I do apologise, ma'am, all you boys look the same."

"Girls, Strax." She corrected lightly, "Is Madame Vastra in? I need to speak to her." He stepped out of the way, letting her into the large town house.

"I will go check on her." Strax informed her, "She was taking tea in the conservatory." Danni nodded as he headed down the hall.

"Oh, Strax?" She called as an afterthought and the little alien turned around, "Can you warn her about, you know?" She waved up and down herself but he just stared at her blankly, "The fact I look different?"

"You look different?" He asked, sounding as if he didn't believe her and she nodded, eyebrows raised in disbelief.

"Quite a bit, Strax." She told him and he shrugged, heading off and mumbling to himself. Danni brushed her dress down, nervous as she waited in the hallway. She didn't know how this was going to go, but she knew that it wasn't going to go well. No one in the right mind was going to believe that she was actually Danni if they knew the Doctor and his past. She'd just have to try and convince the Silurian that she was the red-head she'd met.

"Danielle!" Madame Vastra's voice called all too soon and the lizard woman appeared in the hallway. Danni winced as her features hardened, "Who are you?" She hissed menacingly.

"It's me, Danni." She insisted, "I swear." From Madame Vastra's left, Jenny stepped out in her full maid's outfit, pointing a more futuristic gun at her.

"We know Danni." She told her, "And you ain't 'er. Either start explainin', or run."

"I can explain." She rambled, having not expected the threatening quite so quickly, "I regenerated…"

"You must think us fools." Madame Vastra interrupted, "Danielle is _human_ and cannot regenerate. Try again." Danni's mouth moved up and down a couple of times. She needed something that she knew would prove she was who she was. Perhaps the burn? No, because their Danni had a Vortex Manipulator there, and she'd still not been able to locate it. Her wedding ring? No, she could have just stolen that, it wasn't good enough. She looked the Silurian in the eyes again. She was a smart woman, it'd need to be something intellectual. Knowledge then.

"It's over now, sweetie." Danni stated confidently, pronouncing each word in her strange new voice. Madame Vastra straightened and she saw the recognition in her eyes. She reached out and put a gloved hand on Jenny's gun, pushing it down.

"What is it, ma'am?" Jenny asked, confused, "What does it mean?"

"They were the first words Danielle Fielding ever said to me." She explained, "It means, my love, that she is Danielle Fielding." Jenny turned her gaze back to Danni, who fluttered her fingers nervously.

"Okay, if she is Danni, where's the Doctor?" Jenny asked.

"On a cloud." Danni replied factually, "It's, actually, why I'm here. I need your help." Madame Vastra nodded, turning to Jenny.

"I think we may need some tea."

_~0~0~0~_

Jenny handed Danni a china cup of tea, head tilted as she did. Danni smiled gratefully. They'd adjourned to the parlour. Jenny had fetched the tea and knowing that Vastra wouldn't want to discuss anything further without Jenny, she spent the time telling Danni about their latest case. It was quite fascinating, actually, a lot of decapitated bodies with their necks cauterized to stop blood the bodies bleeding everywhere. It just reminded her how different her tastes were now.

"It's weird, isn't it?" She asked Jenny knowingly, "I spent a whole day in front of a mirror." Jenny started, embarrassed.

"It's like you're a completely different person." She explained in awe, "It looks real." She stood behind Vastra's chair. Even though she knew that she didn't need to pretend in front of Danni, she felt most comfortable at her wife's side.

"It is." Danni reassured, "I know, I've checked." She blew at the top of her cup of tea, "It's strange gaining a new body when you really weren't expecting one." She met Vastra's gaze, "And no, we have no idea why. I was shot in the stomach by Rassilon and then I regenerated. He says he working on it, so it might take a while."

"You said you needed our help." Vastra replied her in usual drawl and Danni nodded.

"He won't leave the TARDIS." She explained, "We've been parked on a cloud for almost two months now and there's no sign of him moving. I don't mind, but he's miserable and I need you to get him out."

"Once he misses his Roman Centurion and his red-headed companion, he will leave again. I don't see how we are needed." Vastra pointed out.

"Amy and Rory are dead." Danni replied bluntly, "So no, they won't draw him out." Both Vastra and Jenny stared at her for a moment, Jenny showing her shock a little more than Vastra.

"How?" Was her one word answer.

"I killed them." Danni told her just as bluntly, "Sort of. I didn't stop their deaths, so I suppose I did kill them Then the Doctor killed me." She pursed her lips together, the slip of her tongue annoying her more than she was willing to admit at that point. Madame Vastra looked intrigued but Danni shook her head, glossing over it, "He needs to be enticed out, and I can't do that from the inside. He won't let me out of the TARDIS, he won't even let me near the doors anymore. I need your help."

"I will need to see him for myself to judge how to proceed." Vastra explained, "I think I'm right in guessing I shall be able to quite shortly?" Danni nodded.

"Are we going to go see him?" Jenny asked, eager to see that blue box again but Vastra smirked.

"I may not know this Danielle yet," She started meaningfully, "But I do know that there isn't a version that allows anyone to 'let' her do anything. Can we expect him to appear shortly?" The blonde nodded.

"Quite angrily too, I should suspect." Danni agreed, taking a sip of her tea, "Oh, I still like this stuff. That's good, I was worried."

"It's not like you to run off without telling him." Vastra commented and Danni shrugged.

"Apparently it is now." She replied, "While we wait for him to turn up," She leant forward, a smirk on her face, "Tell me more about these beheadings."

_~0~0~0~_

"… we determined the technology was from the 23rd Century." Madame Vastra was explaining as there was a loud banging on the front door, "We have several suspects, but this allowed us to narrow them down to…" There was the banging again and the trio turned to look at the door to the conservatory, "I believe your husband may be here."

"Sounds like it." Danni replied with a bit of a pout, she was really enjoying the fascinating case. The sound of the front door being flung open rang through the room, "And still without his manners, it would seem."

"He's always worried about you." Vastra pointed out, "If anything that was only going to increase after you regenerated."

"I suppose, but it's just rude." Danni grumbled as the man himself stormed into the room, top hat on his head and cane in his hand. She could have laughed, he'd stopped to grab his cane?

"Danni!" He cried, sounding angry but looking utterly relieved, "What the hell were you thinking?"

"I wanted to see our friends." She replied calmly, "I left you a note."

"A note?" He raged, pacing back and forward for a moment before turning to yell at her. A note?!

He had gone looking for her, running around the TARDIS like a headless chicken when he'd realised something was wrong. He'd relocated the garden and her rabbit, Sebastian, both of which had gone missing when he'd upgraded the TARDIS theme and he'd been relieved to find them again for her. Of course, that had been before he couldn't find her, which sent him into a panic he'd not felt in quite a while.

The note had only been a temporary source of peace, because she was okay after all, but then he'd realised she'd left the TARDIS on her own, without him into Victorian London, where she'd only ever been a handful of times and never on her own. He'd barely had time to grab his top hat and cane before he'd headed straight to Earth, pushed his way through the lunchtime crowds to find her still absolutely fine, drinking tea with Jenny and Madame Vastra like nothing was wrong.

Now she was stood, looking at him expectantly in a black dress that suited her so completely he felt all his anger fade, replaced by the feeling of utter relief and his face broke into a small smile because she was still there, she hadn't regenerated and she was _safe_.

He strode over, pulling her into a tight hug and it didn't matter that she tensed under his touch, he just wanted to feel her in his arms, solid and very much alive. He rested his head on top of hers, eyes squeezed shut as she gingerly patted him on the back. He pulled back, taking a hold of the tops of her arms.

"Let's go home." He declared softly and she frowned.

"But Madame Vastra was telling me about these beheadings." She moaned and Madame Vastra stood up.

"Perhaps you could help us." She requested, motioning to Jenny, who rushed off and came back moments later with their portable notice board, with all the information and pictures pinned to it, "We think it might be 23rd Century technology, but you might be able to enlighten us to how it came to be in the 19th." He looked down at Danni, ready to protest but she was looking up at him so hopefully, so he sighed and stormed over, quickly looking over the pictures of the deceased. Pretty gruesome, but also incredibly simple to solve.

"It's a Fire Jerry." He told them gruffly, "They travel on space debris. It probably fell off and landed here. They're nocturnal and they adore dairy, put a large quantity of cheese under a box and wait." He turned, clapping his hands, "Right, home." He headed to the door, expecting Danni to follow him.

"We have other cases." Madame Vastra declared, "One's that you may not find so easy to solve." He paused in the door, turning slowly.

"We don't do that anymore." He declared lowly, Danni's mouth opening slightly in offended shock, "We're going to have a nice, calm, _safe_ life on the TARDIS. You'll have to do it yourself."

"But Doctor…" Danni protested. He'd not discussed any of this with her, when had he decided this for the pair of them?

"No." He snapped angrily, "The universe does not care if we help or not, so we're _not_. The monsters can't have you. Let's go." He strode out, cane tapping on the floor with every other step and she sighed in frustration, turning to their friends.

"Thanks for trying." She offered sadly. Jenny reached over to rub her arm sympathetically, but Danni flinched away before she could touch her and followed her husband out.

"This is much worse than I first feared." Madame Vastra said to her voice, her normally calm voice laced with hints of concern, "He carries so much more guilt than I've ever seen in him."

"What do we do, ma'am?" Jenny asked. The Silurian straightened, determined.

"What was asked of us." She replied, "We bring the Doctor back."

_~0~0~0~_

Danni had walked next to the Doctor in silence, hands clasped in front of her pointedly as he'd glowered at everyone and everything around them. The day was cold, as it was winter, but no snow had fallen which was always disappointing around Christmas time. No one paid any attention to them, but the way the Doctor was looking at them, it was probably for the best.

"You know, I would have appreciated being consulted on this whole 'being a recluse for the rest of my life' deal." She declared as they entered the park above which the TARDIS was parked, "Considering I actually now have no idea how long that is." The Doctor didn't look at her, reaching up with his cane to pull the ladder down.

"It's for your own good." He replied shortly, stepping out of the way, "You first."

"No." She snapped, "You first. I'm not letting you look up my skirt while you're keeping me captive."

"I'm not keeping you captive!" He argued back, frustrated, "I just want you safe, is that so bad?"

"I am safe!" She exclaimed, "I only went to Madame Vastra's and you're acting like I was dead."

"Well you were!" He cried before pointing up the ladder, "Now get up." She pursed her lips, angry because he still wasn't telling her what was wrong, and started to climb the ladder in front of him. She paused, looking down at him for a moment.

"Maybe you should think about the _real_ reason that you're keeping me up there." She pointed out, "Then decide that if it really is the best place for me." She headed up before she could see the look on his face she knew would be there, the hurt he'd feel at being reminded of what had happened that had caused her to regenerate in the first place.

She'd headed to the wardrobe to change before he'd even made it up the staircase that the ladder led to, hoping to be able to hide from him for a little while before confronting him about what was really going on. It wasn't like she didn't have any effects from the ordeal, all she had to do was look in the mirror while trying on her normal, much more comfortable than the corset. Every time he went to grab her arm, she was certain he was going to drag her to the door and chuck her out all over again. That couple of seconds of panic would stop her breathing with its intensity.

She knew she had done a bad thing, but Amy would have done it even if she hadn't been there. Amy and Rory had to be together, she knew that even the Doctor knew that, otherwise he wouldn't have tried to get them to build a life together away from him to begin with.

She found him under the console, examining the new array of wires and controls that always came with a new desktop theme. He adored trying to find out how the new console ticked, but mostly he found it very calming to focus on something else other than the thoughts in his head.

"I don't know why you're doing this." She stated quietly and he slowly turned to look at her, his face holding more pain than she could handle. She still loved him deeply, regardless of either of their actions in the past, "Danger has never been a stopping point for you."

"There's so much awfulness out there." He replied sadly, "I can't protect you from it anymore, maybe I never could." She smiled warmly, walking over to stand by his side. If she'd been the old Danni, she would have taken his hand, perhaps even kissed him until he was smiling again. It was what she wanted to do, reassure him everything was going to be okay.

"You're fantastic at looking out for me." She reassured him.

"You regenerated because of me." He said mournfully.

"Is that such a bad thing?" She retorted, even though she wasn't sure of the answer herself, she knew he needed it to be, "Now I have all these lives, these bodies that we didn't have before. I'm not going to wither and die in front of you, in fact you're probably going to go first." She jabbed him in the chest, "You are the old man, after all." He opened his mouth to argue at her cheeky grin, but then noticed her hand hadn't moved, instead had flatted against his chest where his hearts were. The first time she'd willingly touched him for longer than he really liked to think about.

He leant forward, placing a kiss on her forehead and she smiled shakily.

"Soon." He promised, "But not yet. Please." She nodded once.

"Okay." She agreed, "Just, let me know next time something's wrong, okay?" He nodded before turning and motioning to the wires.

"I appear to have lost the mayonnaise control I added in for you." He announced, changing the subject, "Want to help me find it?" She nodded, frowning as she looked them over. It seemed like being part Time Lord didn't automatically mean she knew anything at all.

"I have no idea what any of these are." She told him, "How can I possibly help?" He smiled, now, this was something he could do.

"I'll show you." He replied, reaching in to grab a wire, pulling it out, "This is for the monitor, it…" He never finished his sentence, every single light going out and bathing them in darkness, "Or, maybe it's the lights. Definitely the lights."

_~0~0~0~_

_Hello everyone! I can't believe the response for the prologue, that was totes amazing! I hope this chapter was okay for you too._

_Thanks for all the lovely reviews, I just want to say thank you to all of you, because they were all nice and I hope to use anything you give me to help me make this story better :) Oh, and I know some of you will be curious, but no, I'm not rewriting the 50th. This Danni is just not in it, but other questions (such as Clara's confusion) shall be answered throughout this fanfic._

_Hopefully._

_If I can pull it off :)_

_Anyway, love you all! xxx_


	3. The Barmaid

Danni tried to act chastised, but she couldn't help the smile on her face as she and the Doctor walked through the streets of London yet again. Snow crunched underfoot as the stars shone through breaks in the cloud above them. It was a lovely evening, actually, and it seemed a waste to not spend time in it.

"It's almost Christmas." She moaned, "I just wanted some of Strax's Christmas Pudding. For a creature that feeds through a tube in his neck, he makes excellent deserts."

"You can't keep running away, though." He replied, "You never used to be this much trouble." She turned, walking backwards as she stuck her tongue out at him.

"I'm not used to staying still!" She exclaimed, "Everything happens in order, I actually have to wait for Christmas now, I'm not just going to," she spun in a circle, "whiz off and celebrate it." She rushed forward, grabbing his arm, grinning so happily that no matter how hard he tried to keep the 'grumpy' act, he still smiled back, "I had a shower yesterday, and I let my hair dry on its own. Last time I did that, I ended up on that moon with you and Donna, remember? My hair actually froze, I thought I was going to go bald!"

"I did tell you the icy weather only lasted half an hour before the suns came out." He pointed out as they turned down another small alley.

"You try believing that when your hair has turned to ice." She protested, "My ginger hair…" She paused, stopping in her tracks, "I loved my ginger hair." She whispered. He reached out, brushing her blonde hair behind her ear.

"I love your blonde hair." He replied and she shied away from him slightly, slipping out from his grasp. She'd been slowly trying to let him hold her hand, or stroke her hair because it did feel brilliant. However, that nagging feeling that his touch meant something bad was about to happen still hadn't gone away, and outside of the comfort of the TARDIS it was more than she could handle at the moment.

"Plus, it's snowing." She continued, brushing the subject she really didn't want to talk about away, "How can you want to stay inside when it's snowing?" She pointed down an alley, towards the back end of a pub "Look, a snowman. Since when have you not wanted to build a snowman?"

"It's a rubbish snowman." He retorted, "Remember the ones we build in the Artic with Martha? Now they were good snowmen."

"I seem to recall yours falling over." She reminded him cheekily and he shook his head.

"No, that's not right." He dismissed and she laughed as they walked past the one she'd pointed out, a woman in a red dress, a barmaid if the tankards on the barrel next to her were anything to go by, stood looking at it as well. It had strange face, slanted down eyes and carved-in teeth.

"Did you make this snowman?" The woman called over to them but neither of them looked back.

"No." The Doctor replied, hating the fact they were being engaged. He just wanted to get them both home before someone tried to tempt them into helping. Helping always lead to dangerous situations and that was what he was trying to keep Danni out of.

"Well, who did?" The woman continued in a strong, London accent, "Cos it wasn't there a second ago. It just appeared, from nowhere." He growled slightly and they both turned to see the woman stood there, clutching at the ends of her shoal. Danni tried not to gasp as Clara stared back at them expectantly. Oh, this must be when they first meet! She stayed back as the Doctor stormed over, pulling out the reading glasses Amy had lent him in Manhattan. He put them on, looking over Clara critically, like she was an inconvenience he had to sort out, before turning and taking a pinch of the snow from the snowman, letting it crumble between his fingers.

"Maybe it's snow that fell before." He suggested gruffly, "Maybe it remembers how to make snowmen."

"What, snow that can remember? That's silly." Clara scoffed and he turned, staring at her in almost a challenge.

"What's wrong with silly?" He challenged.

"Nothing. Still talking to you, ain't I?" The Doctor smiled softly at her, taking off the glasses. Danni watched, wanting to clap slightly. It was always wonderful seeing that look on his face, that look of interest in the people he met.

"What's your name?" He asked gently and the woman straightened slightly.

"Clara." She told him. He nodded, still playing with his glasses in his hands.

"Nice name," He declared, looking up in thought slightly, "Clara." He said it purposefully before walking over to Danni, grabbing her hand, "You should definitely keep it." With that, he began walking the pair away. Danni looked over her shoulder, nodding to the Doctor pointedly, "Goodbye!"

"Oi!" Clara called, chasing after the pair and planting her hands on her hips as they fell still, "Where are you going?" She asked, "I thought we were just getting acquainted. You've not even introduced me to your lady friend." The Doctor turned around slowly, opening his mouth to correct her about Danni, to tell her that she was his wife when he spotted her stance. That look of defiance, like she wasn't impressed by him reminded him of Amy. His little Amelia Pond, who would never take any of his nonsense when he was trying to brush her off.

"Those were the days." He replied, surprising Clara with the sad look on his face. He turned back to Danni, tucking her hand in the crook of his arm, "Come on, Strax will be wondering what's taking us so long." He told her quietly and she nodded, following him and leaving the woman stood there, wondering on what he'd said.

"She seemed nice." Danni commented as they reached the carriage waiting for them, "Pretty." He opened the carriage door, letting her in first like the gentleman he was.

"I didn't notice." He replied honestly, because he didn't. All he'd noticed was how similarly built she had been compared to Danni's old body, the one he'd killed and he slammed the door slightly as he sat next to her, indicating Strax to get a move on.

"Did she have a point, though?" She asked as they began rolling over the cobbled streets outside, "Is there something wrong with the snow?"

"I don't know." He admitted lowly, "But it's not our problem anymore."

"_'How refreshing to see you taking an interest again._'" Madame Vastra's voice came over the speaker hanging from the ceiling, crackling with the old parts being used in the new technology. Danni smirked while the Doctor glowered, "_'Was she nice?_'"

"I just spoke to her." The Doctor grumbled.

"She was very pretty!" Danni called and he shot her a look that she replied with her own innocent one.

"'_And made your usual impact, no doubt_.'" Madame Vastra replied and Danni nodded even as the Doctor rolled his eyes, shifting closer to her.

"No, no impact at all. Those days are over." He insisted and Danni shook his head. He narrowed his eyes and she smiling brightly and innocently.

"'You can't help yourself.'" Madame Vastra pointed out, "'It's the same story, every time. And it always begins with the same two words.'" The Doctor glared at the speaker handing from the ceiling.

"She'll never be able to find us again," He argued back, gesturing to the speaker, "she doesn't even have the names Doctor or Danni." Danni smiled, she knew he couldn't help himself when offered vague information, "what two words?" Before Madame Vastra could reply, the pair were startled by the flap on the carriage roof opening. Danni jumped, grabbing onto his arm in surprise as Clara's head appeared, dangling upside down as the young woman looked in from the outside.

"Doctor?" She asked, pronouncing the words purposefully, "Doctor who?" The Doctor stared at her, completely perplexed as Danni let out a bark of laughter.

"Oh, I knew I liked you." She cried, delighted, leaning towards the window and sticking her head out, "Strax!" She called, "Pull over, we've got a guest!"

"Oh no, she's not staying." The Doctor replied firmly, looking at Clara who was climbing in, "You're not staying."

"Your lady friend says I am, so I am." Clara retorted, pushing in between them and sitting down, smiling at Danni smugly.

"Yes, I do." Danni agreed, "She's just worried about the snow, aren't you sweetie?" The Doctor continued to frown, unsure how to feel about how happy Danni seemed to be about this strange woman having followed them. He wanted her to be happy, and the way her eyes shone was showing that, but he wanted that to be because of him, not some barmaid.

"Well she can worry someplace else." The Doctor snapped, looking at Clara pointedly "And she's not my 'lady friend', she's my wife." He stood up as the carriage turned to pull in, causing him to sway slightly. However, he was used to trying to stand straight whilst the TARDIS was flying so he still managed to push his way in between the two. He really didn't want this strange woman anywhere near Danni.

"If I'm not staying does it matter?" Clara challenged.

"Doctor, she's just worried about the snow." Danni reminded him gently, "You said so yourself that you didn't know what was wrong with it. That's not a good sign." She watched him smile ever so slightly, playing up to his ego worked but only for a second as he shook his head.

"It's not our problem anymore." He reiterated as the carriage jolted to a stop, "Stay here, I'll sort it out with Strax then we can go home." He made his way over to the door.

"Sure, I'll stay here with the strange woman you didn't want me near in the first place." Danni replied in a singsong voice as the Doctor opened the door. He paused and she nudged Clara, who wasn't even trying to hide her smile as he sighed.

"Fine, come on then." He grumbled and Danni pushed herself up off the bench, hurrying out because she knew what he was about to do next. Clara moved to follow them, but the Doctor slammed the door, sonicing the lock so she could get out.

"Hey! Let me out!" Clara exclaimed, rattling the door handle.

"Stay there a moment." The Doctor muttered, as if she had the choice before turning to Danni, pointing at her like an angry parent, "See? This is what happens when you run off. Now we have a problem we're going to have to deal with."

"We already have a problem." She retorted, turning and heading to a larger pile of snow, bending down, "What's wrong with the snow?" She reached out, picking up and letting it fall through her fingers, "It feels just the same to me."

"Sir!" Strax exclaimed, walking to the Time Lord's side, "Your wife says we have a guest. Do you wish for me to prepare tea?" The Doctor stared at him, not even knowing where to begin with what was wrong with that suggestion.

"No, that's fine Strax." He told the Sontaran, walking over to his wife and crouching down next to her, "Are you really that interested in the snow?" He asked her gently and she nodded, taking another handful and sprinkling it back on the floor.

"It caused a barmaid to chase after you, which quite frankly is my job." She explained, "Do you have any idea at all what's wrong with it?" He shook his head.

"No." He replied, reaching out to take his own handful, letting it fall through his fingers, "It doesn't feel right, though." Snow that didn't feel right? Now that was new. He briefly let himself wonder about it, going over the many different things that could make snow feel wrong yet still be snow, then he shook his head, chucking the handful away from him, "It's not our problem, though."

"Can we at least look into it?" She asked pleadingly, brown eyes looking up at him and tempting him, "If it's not immediately dangerous, we can leave it, I promise." She stared at him hopefully, eyes wide and her cheeks pink from the cold air.

Since she'd had the idea to escape to Madame Vastra last year, she'd practically been doing it every other day. He was sure she didn't even like being out of the TARDIS that much, and how they had argued about it, but she just wouldn't stay put. She just couldn't see that he couldn't do this anymore, he tried his best and he offered his help and all he got in return was more heartache. His wife had died, and she had died because of him. It didn't matter that she'd regenerated, he wasn't sure if he could ever get over the fact that he had been the one to send her to her death. He just had to make it right, make sure that he never had to see that again.

She was still so scared of him, and it was the one thing he had hoped would never happen. The whole universe could be scared of him, but not her.

"Fine." He begrudgingly agreed, "But if it's nothing, we're heading back to the TARDIS." She grinned, clapping happily before leaning across and placing a kiss on his cheek.

"If something strange has been happening, Vastra would have been looking into it already." She gushed, standing up and leaving him there, "Strax! We're looking into the snow!" She ran over to the Sontaran as he watched her, reaching up to his cheek.

She'd only been able to start to barely tolerate him touching her again, and he still couldn't surprise her, but she'd kissed his cheek. Maybe this was the best thing to do, after all.

_**~0~0~0~**_

Clara had thought they were going to let her out when the door opened, but the strange pair had climbed in and the carriage started rolling once again. She knew she should have been worried, after all being trapped in the back of a carriage by strangers was the start of stories which typically ended with 'They found her in the Thames a week later, they could barely recognise her'. However, she didn't. Her heart was racing but she listened to the Doctor explain that they were only going to look into it, and by no means must she think she had any place trying to help them.

Of course, they locked her back in the carriage again but she wasn't going to just sit there and wait to get in on the action. She began banging, demanding that they let her out right now.

"They've taken samples from snowmen all over London." Strax explained to Danni and the Doctor, both of whom were checking the snow again. He'd taken them to just outside the Great Intelligence building, where Madame Vastra was sure the trouble was stemming through, "What do you suppose they're doing in there?" The Doctor looked closer at the snow he'd picked up, letting it run through his fingers.

"This snow is new. Possibly alien." He explained, "When you find something brand new in the world, something you've never seen before, what's the next thing you look for?"

"A use?" Danni suggested.

"A grenade?" Strax suggested, sounding proud at his suggestion. The Doctor paused, rolling his eyes at the other alien.

"A profit." The Doctor declared cynically, standing up and chucking the last of the snow he had onto the floor, "That's Victorian values for you!" He held his hand out to Danni, who took it while worrying her lip. He wasn't wrong, but she hated the fact he didn't seem to care anymore. He used to make excuses, try and find the good in everyone.

She took his hand, linking her fingers through his to try and offer him some comfort. He smiled gently at her, taking her other hand slowly and linking their fingers there as well.

"So it is something?" She asked him and he nodded.

"Yes." He admitted.

"I suggest a full frontal assault with automated laser monkeys, scalpel mines and acid." Strax declared, smiling happily at the end. Oh, how he wanted to be in battle once again.

"Why?" The Doctor asked in exasperation, looking away from his wife and at the butler. Strax paused, did they need a reason to attack? Of course, he'd forgotten what a peaceful man this Time Lord seemed to be. He couldn't understand it himself, but he knew how to use it.

"Couldn't we at least investigate?" He suggested hopefully instead. Investigation might mean a battle.

"It's none of our business." The Doctor snapped back, turning back to his wife, stepping slightly closer. She hadn't let go of either of his hands, perhaps if he just dipped his head slightly…

"Sir, permission to express my opposition to your current apathy?" Strax asked and the Doctor's teeth clenched in frustration, hanging his head slightly.

"Permission granted." He replied and Strax nodded once.

"Sir, I am opposed to your current apathy." He declared and Danni smiled, letting go of his hands.

"Perhaps we should let Clara out now?" she suggested pointedly, "We've locked her in there twice now." He nodded.

"Thank you, Strax." He bit out, walking over to the Sontaran, "And if ever I'm in need of advice from a psychotic potato-dwarf," He slapped his hands on the side of Strax's head, slightly harder than he might of normally because he'd be so close, "you'll certainly be the first to know." He let the Sontaran go.

"But if the snow is new and alien, shouldn't we be making some attempt to destroy it? Be reasonable!" Strax complained. The Doctor put his finger on his mouth, stopping him talking.

"It is not our problem." He reiterated firmly, "Over a thousand years of saving the universe, Strax, you know the one thing I learned?" He moved his finger, "The universe doesn't care." Danni opened her mouth to protest, but he obviously wasn't done, "All I have tried to do is help, and in return the universe has taken my friends and destroyed my marriage. I have done enough." He looked over at Danni, who looked horrified at what he's said, "We have given enough." He told her, "Now, we have a problem of our own to worry about…" He turned and walked away from Strax, heading to the carriage. He'd changed his mind, the TARDIS was better than this. He opened the door and Clara stopped her banging, pushing herself to the other side of the carriage.

"Don't worry." The Doctor told her tiredly, climbing in and sitting across from her. "No-one's going to hurt you."

"What is that thing?" She asked, nodding towards Strax who was stood just outside the door.

"Silence, boy!" He snapped, confusing her.

"That's Strax and as you can see, he's easily confused." The Doctor snapped pointedly in reply, glaring at him and

"Silence, girl." Strax corrected himself, looking her up and down and wondering if there was as much difference between these humans as they seemed to think there are, "Sorry, lad."

"Sontaran." The Doctor explained, "Clone warrior race - factory produced, whole legions at a time. Two genders is a bit further than he can count."

"Sir, do not discuss my reproductive cycle in front of enemy girls! It's embarrassing." Strax hissed and the Doctor rolled his eyes.

"Typical middle child of six million." He told Clara, who just looked even more confused. She looked out of the door, wondering if she had a way to escape when she spotted Danni stood to the side, rubbing her arm in discomfort, looking devastated and Clara felt a twinge of sympathy for her. She had been nice, had talked to her while her husband seemed to sulk. She had heard everything they had been saying as she tried to break out, that can't have been nice to hear.

"Perhaps you should ask your wife first." She scolded the Doctor, becoming angry at the way the woman seemed to be upset.

"Excuse me?" He asked, confused and she nodded towards Danni.

"Maybe you should ask her before declaring your marriage is destroyed." She retorted, "You men are all alike. Thinking you know best, making decisions without even asking us. Does that look like a woman who agrees with you?" The Doctor looked out at Danni, immediately regretting his words as she met his eyes and smiled sadly.

"Maybe you're right." He muttered. She headed over, standing next to Strax and leaning in slightly.

"You really are okay." Danni promised Clara with a kind smile, "It's just a precaution, but you'll be on your way in no time." Clara looked between the two, still feeling more bewildered than concerned about her own wellbeing. Sure this 'Doctor' was incredibly grumpy, but the way he looked at his wife, like there was nothing else on the planet but her, didn't have her believing she was in any actual danger from them.

"Who are you?" She asked the pair. Danni opened her mouth to explain but the Doctor shifted, shaking his head.

"It doesn't matter," He told her lowly, "because you're about to forget that we ever met." He glanced at Strax, "We'll need the worm."

"Sir." He grunted, walking off. Clara dashed to the doorway, trying to see what Strax was doing.

"You'll need the what?" She exclaimed as Danni groaned, "The worm? What worm?"

"Oh, not the worm!" Danni cried, "You know I don't like that thing!"

"She followed us." The Doctor replied, "It's necessary."

"That's what you said about that little boy." Danni retorted, "But we walked into him! He was so confused, I don't like it." He glanced at Clara, not wanting to fight in front of her regardless of whether she'd remember or not, shifting closer to the door and leaning out.

"She can't know who were are." He insisted quietly and Danni put her hands on her hips, much like Clara had done before.

"And why not?" Danni snapped, "What's the worst that could happen? She's nice."

"I'm doing it for her own good." He promised, reaching out, hovering just in front of her with his fingers stretched. She sighed in annoyance and let him hold her hand, "Nice isn't safe around me, you know that."

"No, I don't, actually." Danni snapped before glancing at Clara, "But when have you ever listened to me?" He brought her hand to his mouth, placing a kiss on her palm and revelled for a moment in the fact she didn't yank it away.

"What's going on?" Clara asked worriedly.

"Don't worry, it won't hurt," The Doctor reassured her, "but one touch on your bare skin and you'll lose the last hour of your memory." Strax appeared next to Danni, his face holding no expression as he looked between the people there.

"Oh Lord…" Danni breathed as the Doctor frowned, seeing the Sontaran hadn't done what he'd asked.

"Where is it?" He asked and Strax frowned.

"Where's what, sir?" Strax asked in reply.

"I sent you to get the memory worm."

"Did you?" Strax asked, just confirming what they'd all thought, "When?" He spotted Clara, "Who's he? What are we doing here?" He turned and the Doctor shook his head, unable to believe what was happening, "Look, it's been snowing!" Danni nodded, rubbing the Sontaran's arm. He seemed so happy that it'd been snowing, he was so cute.

"Sweetie, you forgot to put the gauntlets on." She explained gently. He frowned.

"Why would I need the gauntlets?" He leant in closer to her, smiling evilly, "Do you want me to get the memory worm?" Danni shook her head.

"No, the Doctor did though." She turned to her husband, "Maybe this is a sign? Perhaps we should leave her alone." The Doctor shook his head.

"No, that's not good enough." He declared, standing up and shoving Strax out of the way in frustration, "You! Find that worm, now." He snarled, climbing out. Danni sighed and took his place, sitting across from Clara.

"He never used to be like this." She explained sadly, "But bad things happened. He's a real sweet heart, really."

"What happened?" Clara asked, intrigued and Danni glanced out at her husband, her Theta who was currently waving an empty jar at Strax. Who, to his credit, didn't look offended.

"A couple of our friends died." She replied quietly, "Then I died too and I think it was too much for him." She glanced back at Clara, who to her credit still looked confused, "It was a bad day. It took its toll on the both of us." Clara looked her up and down, trying to spot it.

"You seem fine." Clara told her, "You're not like Mr Grumpy out there." Danni laughed.

"No, but I can't kiss my own husband anymore." Danni explained, "Pain affects us all differently. We're both just still healing." She nodded towards the door, "You could probably run now, if you like. Go to Paternoster Row and look for a woman named Madame Vastra."

"Why are you helping me?" Clara asked as they both slowly climbed out of the carriage.

"Because you're nice." Danni whispered in reply, "Be safe, Clara." She nodded and went to run off when she spotted them. Large, black fabric gloves on the seat of the carriage, with only three fingers. She smiled and nudged Danni, nodding towards them.

"I think that I might stay." She whispered as Danni giggled, putting her hand over her mouth.

"Oh, this is going to be fun!" She muttered in reply.

_~0~0~0~_

The Doctor held the worm in his gauntleted hand, Danni's nose wrinkled in disgust as it flopped in the air. They'd finally got a hold of it, but as much as she tried to be open minded about all species, the memory worm was just gross.

"There you go." He declared, "One touch and you lose about an hour of your memory. Let it bite you and you could lose decades." Clara watched, also not particularly impressed either, "And you're still not trying to run." He pointed out and she nodded.

"I don't understand how the snowman built itself." She retorted, "I'll run once you've explained."

"Clara who?" He asked, chucking the gauntlets down next to the jar.

"Doctor who?" Clara quickly retorted and the Doctor chuckled.

"Oh, dangerous question." He replied and Clara looked at him, head tilted to one side.

"What's wrong with dangerous?" She asked.

"The snow emits a low level telepathic field..." The Doctor explained as there was a noise just down the next alley. Both Danni and Clara looked at the same time at the deep whooshing noise to see the snowman, with its evil eyes and slanted mouth, stood there was if it had been there all along.

"My snowman..." Clara breathed and Danni patted her arm, slowly walking towards it. How extraordinary, snow that really could remember how to build snowmen. She reached out, putting her hand on its chest. It felt solid and cold, like the frozen water it was. No heartbeat, no movement. Just snow.

Another snowman appeared next to her and she yelped slightly in surprise. It was the same snowman, with the same eyes. How was it doing that? Another one appeared.

"Danni!" The Doctor cried, grabbing her and pulling her back towards where he and Clara had been stood, "What do you think you're doing?"

"It appeared from nowhere." She replied, "How's it doing that?"

"_Clara _won't stop thinking about them." He snapped, glaring at the other woman, "Stop it right now."

"I can't!" Clara exclaimed, defensive because of his anger.

"Yes you can." Danni reassured her, "Think about something else, anything else." The Doctor grabbed her hand, not willing to wait for Clara and turned them both around, ready to run the other way. Another snowman appeared, this time very much animated and it roared, specks of snow firing towards them on its icy breath. The Doctor skidded to a halt, pulling Danni back with such force that she slammed into his side, crying out at the impact.

"Keep back!" He shouted at it, the panic in his voice, "Stay away from my wife!" He wasn't ready for this. If it had been just him and Clara, he probably could have thought straight. But as the snowmen began popping up, more and more until there seemed to be a small army of them, all he could see was them surrounding _her_, killing _her._

"What do we do?" Danni cried, actually clinging to him back as Clara huddled into them.

"Nothing, there's nothing we can do." He rambled out, holding onto her tight, "Clara has to stop thinking about them. Don't let go of me." She looked down at Clara, who looked terrified.

"You have to help her." Danni told him, "She's terrified and I don't know what to do!"

"I have to protect you." He retorted, his mind now on one track and she shook her head.

"You can't." She told him and he looked down, devastated, "Not without helping Clara first. Look at her!" He did as she asked, looking down at the barmaid whose eyes were wide as she trembled under then threat. He let go of Danni, taking Clara's face in his hands and making her look at him.

"You have to focus." He commanded as gently as he could under the circumstances. Her eyes drifted from his as they were backed against a wall, "Clara, listen to me." He told her and her eyes snapped back, "The snow is feeding off your thoughts."

"I don't understand." She exclaimed, scared and he squeezed his eyes shut, trying not to get frustrated by her fear because he needed her to stop the snowmen more than anything at that moment.

"You're caught in their telepathic field, they're mirroring you." He rambled, "The more you think about them, the more they appear. Imagine them melting, picture it, picture them melted!" Clara squeezed her eyes shut, concentrating as hard as she could on the image of the snowmen in puddles on the floor, the cold water splashing them on the face and pooling on the floor, the stars in the sky shining in the reflection of the puddles.

"Oh my god!" Danni screamed as the sound of something popping filled the air and she was hit with ice cold water. She opened her eyes to see no sign of the snowmen and Danni stood there, soaked from head to foot with water, eyes wide at the sheer coldness of it.

She smiled, her heart-warming as the Doctor quickly let her go, almost pushing her out of the way to get to his wife, pulling her up against him in the tightest hug she'd seen a person give another. He held her like she would fade away, the feeling of relief causing him to pant lightly as Danni gingerly wrapped her arms around his waist, quietly reassuring him she was okay. If she'd had any doubt that the grumpy man felt anything but annoyance, it was washed away by the way he almost cried when Danni muttered that she loved him too.

_~0~0~0~_

Danni pulled the jacket tighter around her as the Doctor unlocked the TARDIS doors. Clara had managed to get out of having her memory wiped by proving she needed to remember to stop the snowmen. The Doctor had bundled her into the carriage and sent Strax off with her, but Clara had Madame Vastra's address so Danni knew it wouldn't be the last they'd see of the woman. She and the Doctor had walked back to the TARDIS, the Doctor gently wrapping his jacket around her shoulders considering how much of the melted ice had landed on her. He hadn't seen, but she had been pretty much surrounded when he'd been coaxing Clara into thinking the right thing. It was probably best that she didn't tell him, either.

She smiled gratefully as he let her in first, closing the door quietly behind them and locking it.

"I'm going to go get changed." She told him, taking his jacket from her shoulders and putting it onto the pilot seat, "I hope it's not too we…"

"Don't run off again." He pleaded, looking at her with wide, pain-filled eyes, "I can't lose you, Danni. I _can't_." He walked over slowly, trying to not scare her as he reached up and brushed her hair behind her ear, "I promise I'll work it out." He told her, "We'll find out why you regenerated, we'll find out how you got into the Time War, but I need you by my side as we do." She nodded.

"Okay, I promise." She whispered, seeing him physically let go of the tension he'd been holding with the worry over her, "Did you mean it?" He shook his head.

"Of course not." He promised in return, "Did you?" She shook her head before a large grin appeared on her face, her tongue behind her teeth in a way that made her look incredibly cheeky.

"Love you, Theta." She told him honestly and he beamed back.

"I love you too, Danni-Girl."

_~0~0~0~_

_I'm just gonna post this before I change my mind. Next chapter will be much better, I promise :)_


	4. The Ice Woman

Danni sat on the floor by the Doctor's side, leaning her head on his thigh as he lightly stroked her hair with one hand and kept a firm grip on his book in the other. The light had slowly dimmed over the last hour or so in the console room, the TARDIS's way of telling the pair to go to sleep. Danni had actually given up reading her book a while ago, instead using the time to give her eyes a rest by taking her glasses off and placing them on the floor next to her. She'd been half-asleep since, which the Doctor knew was the main reason he had been able to keep running his fingers through her hair for so long.

He hadn't meant what he'd said to Strax, their marriage wasn't destroyed but it certainly wasn't in the state it once was. He'd always been worried about her, but now he was in constant battle with himself to keep her safe from any danger out there and to keep her safe from himself, who had actually been the one to cause her the most harm. So much so that she was scared of him, no matter how much she tried to convince him otherwise. He'd felt her flinch, and seen her make excuses to leave when he came into the room when she was feeling particularly fragile.

He'd seen her dreams, not having the hearts to tell her that she was now projecting them periodically to him when they did sleep together. Dreams of him pushing her out of the TARDIS again and again. They were quite vivid, mainly because he still needed to show her how to stop it happening but also because she felt an enormous amount of fear during those reruns in her head. Time Lords tended to project when feeling strong amounts of emotion, he'd been guilty of it in the past and while humans would pick it up slightly, making them echo the feeling even if they weren't sure why, he did try to keep them to himself. She didn't know that, so hadn't been able to stop it overflowing to whoever was there, which lucky was just him. He'd get around to it, in fact she shouldn't have much trouble chucking up the barriers that she obviously didn't know she needed. He remembered seeing her reject the Master on the Valiant quite easily when he'd first tried to read her mind, he guessed the fact she also seemed to be part Time Lord explained that as well.

The slight tickle, the nudging inside his own head was his first indication that she'd fallen asleep. Being awake made it much easier for him to block them out, but he did get the smallest glimpse of what was going on inside her head. A flash a blonde hair, a laugh with those four beats and the feeling of pure terror.

That was another thing they'd never talked about. Danni had always been so against dwelling on the bad of the past, and he'd never liked to open up old wounds, so they'd just carried on like nothing had happened. But the Master plagued her dreams almost as much as he did and he'd never really realised how much the time on the Valiant had affected her. The way she spoke about the other Time Lord had him painted as this misunderstood man, who had been battered and abused by his elders and driven to the point of evil by circumstance, but that he was ultimately a good man. On the brief occasions they'd talked about what had happened, she'd insist that while he'd used the drums to initially coerce her, that he wasn't entirely to blame and then she'd change the subject.

But, having seen some of the memories she'd dreamt over as she slept, unaware that he could see what had happened, startled him into realising that just because she remembered the experience overall that way, didn't mean she felt it at the time. Pretty much every time was filled with a dread that would wake him up. She'd been absolutely terrified of the Master but the man had been clever, twisting it into something he had wanted and now she had to live with that.

The Doctor hadn't saved her then, either. He hadn't seen it until it was much too late and he'd let her get hurt in a way he couldn't save her. Never again. He was going to be a better husband if it took the rest of life.

The phone rang, waking Danni, who muttered out a confused 'no' as he rolled his eyes. Could they not just be left in peace?

"It's probably Vastra." Danni pointed out, rubbing her eyes before groping for her glasses, "I'll get it."

"No, it's fine." He muttered, reaching out and picking the handset up, "Yes, what?" He snapped, holding the phone to his ear in frustration, "My wife was asleep and I'm trying to read!"

"_Miss Clara and her concerns about the snow_." Vastra started without greeting, "_I gave her the one-word test_." He rolled his eyes, flipping through his book as if he was trying to prove to himself that he didn't care.

"Always pointless." He snapped, "What did she say?" There was a pause on the other side and he took the moment to glance down at his wife, who was obviously readjusting to being awake again, "Well?" He asked, still no reply, "Well?"

"_Pond_." The one word answer stunned him, he swallowed as his gaze shot right back to his wife, who was now kneeling and looking at him in confusion. He took the glasses off his face, Amy's glasses, and looked at them. So much love and hope and pain and loss associated with one small word.

"Doctor, what is it?" Danni asked, standing up in her concern at the way her husband seemed to freeze. He didn't reply, so she gently removed the phone from his grasp and held it to her ear, "What did she say?" She asked.

"_Pond_." Madame Vastra's voice replied, confirming her guess over who had been ringing them in the first place, "_Strax has already suggested where to start investigating_." Danni nodded, now completely understanding what had caused the Doctor to react like his world had just turned upside down.

"I'll give you a call back." Danni told the woman gently, hanging the phone up before turning to the Doctor, kneeling down in front of him, "You don't have to do anything, you know that, right?"

"How?" He croaked out before pulling her closer, resting his forehead on hers and squeezing his eyes shut. She tensed underneath him, much like she always did these days, but then she relaxed, wrapping her arms around him and hugging him back, albeit slightly gingerly.

"She won't know what the word means." She started slowly, not wanting to sound like an idiot but also wanting to help him by working through her train of thought, "There's no way. So she's telling us something else."

"It'll be what triggered her into coming back to find us." The Doctor replied tiredly, "I'm guessing you told her about Paternoster Row?" Danni shrugged, blushing slightly at being caught even though he hadn't opened his eyes so couldn't see her.

"She seemed nice." She offered, "So, an actual pond?"

"Most likely. And it'll have something to do with the snow." He opened his eyes, growling in his frustration as he leant back, running his free hand over his face, "Why can't they just leave us alone? Why is there always _something_?"

"Because the universe is horrible and scary." Danni replied, taking the glasses out of his hand before her broke then, folding them up before putting them in his pocket, "So when people see a beacon of hope and light, they flock towards it." She smiled softly at him, "That's you, by the way."

"I don't want them." He snapped passionately, "I just want it to be the two of us."

"No you don't." She told him and he blinked in surprise, "You love doing what you do, and something bad happening isn't going to change that. You're just scared."

"So are you." He retorted angrily and motioned with both hands towards her as she failed to hide the flinch at his raised voice, "See?! You can't even stand me touching you. You're terrified!"

"Well, do you blame me?" She snapped harshly, "A terrible thing happened and it was my fault!" His eyes narrowed in his confusion as she fell back to sit on her heels, "I can't do anything right! Everything I do ends in the people I love being hurt!" She sighed, "What's to stop me doing it again?"

"What happened was not your fault." He insisted, climbing off the chair and sitting next to her, "You've not hurt anyone, you did what you had to do."

"Yeah, right." She replied with a snort, "Look what I did to you! You won't do anything you love to do and it's all my fault!" She looked heartbroken and he sighed, wrapping her up in a hug that she returned gladly, "I'm so sorry, Theta."

"You have nothing to be sorry for." He promised, moving back and smirking a smirk she'd not seen in over a year, "How about we go see a girl about a pond?" Her eyes lit up in hope.

"Really?" She asked and he nodded, jumping up and spinning on the spot with an energy he'd forgotten he had.

"Come along, Danni-Girl!" He cried, clapping his hands in eagerness. She scrambled up off the floor, beaming.

"I'll go get changed!" She cried, turning and dashing out of the console room to change into her more Victorian-friendly clothing. His smile faltered as she disappeared, that feeling of trepidation coming back and he rung his hands together as he waited.

_~0~0~0~_

The Doctor jumped out of the window of the Institute, rushing over to Danni, who had done as she was told and had waited outside for him to do his investigating. He grabbed her hand and began pulling her down the street and away from the grand house that held the Great Intelligence.

"Were you all clever?" She asked as they dashed down the alley where he'd parked the TARDIS.

"Incredibly clever and hopelessly charming." He confirmed, reaching up and pulling the ladder down before motioning for her to climb first, "I made incredibly funny jokes, next time you can come so you can fully appreciate them! And now I know what pond means." She glanced back at him, her hearts swelling at the grin on his face, he looked like a child in a sweetshop he was so happy.

"Well?" She asked, "Are you going to tell me?" She stopped at the top, waiting for him to join her before heading up the spiral metal staircase.

"It's not snow, it's multi-nuclear crystalline organisms." He told her in a long ramble that almost sounded like one long word and made as much sense as it sounded, "It really _does_ remember what it finds, and it's looking for something very particular."

"What's that?" She asked.

"DNA!" He cried, opening the TARDIS door and running to the console, "Human DNA to be exact! And our Mr Intelligence has found the perfect source for it." He turned finding her stood behind him, hanging onto his every word, waiting patiently for him to continue on, "A pond." He finished smugly, flipping the switch to send them off across London's sky.

"Brilliant." She breathed. He nodded, stepping closer and bowing his head, ready to do what he had always done when he'd figured something brilliant out, which was kiss her. But he stopped himself, with much protesting from other parts of him, and instead he rubbed her arm instead in affection.

Danni bit her lip as he let go, turning back to the console to make sure they didn't crash into anything important. He seemed disappointed, and truth be told she was too. She was sure he was going to kiss her, but she'd scared him away from trying and now he'd move away before even attempting.

The TARDIS rocked ever so slightly, indicating she had come to a stop and the Doctor turned around, smiling.

"Let's go look at a pond!" He exclaimed happily, feeling more himself than he had all year. He almost skipped to the door, doing a little bounce midway due to the bubbling excitement. Danni quickly fell by his side, desperately trying to bring up the courage to kiss him first, but the moment was gone and they were heading down the stairs once again.

_~0~0~0~_

It was night when they landed, which wasn't too bad for the Doctor really so Danni didn't comment on it. She did have a lot to say about him parking on the roof of the building, meaning the pair had to shimmy down the side of the grand house without being spotted, but he was having such a good time he just promised that she was a wonderful shimmier and she spent the next few minutes blushing.

"Body frozen in a pond," The Doctor drawled as he scanned the frozen pond to the front of the house with his screwdriver, reading the result as the end popped out, "the snow gets a good long look at a human being, like a full body scan." He strolled around the raised edge, looking down into it to try and see through the frosty ice, "Everything they need to evolve. Pond. Good point, Clara."

"So what do we do?" Danni asked, spotting Strax approach them before the Doctor. She smiled brightly at the Sontaran, "You'd better have brought me some pudding, Strax." She told him teasingly.

"It is in the carriage, ma'am." He replied as the Doctor spun around, pocketing his screwdriver as he did.

"What are you doing here?" He asked, snapping slightly out of habit, like he did whenever anyone who wasn't him was stood by Danni.

"Madame Vastra wondered if you were needing any grenades." Strax told him, not at all fazed by the man's tone. The Doctor's eyebrows shot up in surprise.

"_Grenades_?" He exclaimed and Strax glanced at Danni, who shook her head to tell him that can't have been right.

"She might have said help." Strax corrected himself. They were one and the same to him, but not to these people.

"Help for what?" The Doctor challenged.

"Well, your investigation." Strax explained.

"Investigation?" The Doctor exclaimed in defence, "Who says I'm investigating? Do you think I'm going to start investigating just because my wife meets a bird and becomes infatuated with her?" He pointed at Strax, "Who do you think I am?" He turned away look back down at the ice.

"Sherlock Holmes." Strax replied knowingly, Danni snorting in shock and amusement at the cheek from the Sontaran. The Doctor spun, completely offended and he pointed at the short alien a few times before hopping onto the floor.

"Don't be clever, Strax, it doesn't suit you." He snapped and Strax looked down like a small child who didn't agree with being told off.

"Sorry, sir." He muttered, obviously not the least bit sorry.

"I'm the clever one," The Doctor continued, poking Strax right between his eyes, "_you're_ the potato one."

"Yes, sir." Strax agreed with a roll of his eyes. He'd obviously been spending too much time around humans, he was picking up their habits.

"Now go away." He commanded grumpily, turning to hop back up on the pond edge.

"Yes..." Strax shot Danni a gleeful look, "_Mr Holmes._" He walked off, leaving the Doctor to stare after him in shock and Danni to burst out laughing.

"Oi! Shut up, you're not clever or funny and you've got tiny little legs!" He shouted after Strax before pointing down at Danni, "You used to be much less cheeky, you know?" She shook her head.

"Nah, I was always like this." She declared before climbing up onto the edge next to him, struggling slightly with the large skirt of her dress, "Is that who I am? The cheeky one?" He nodded, shooting his hand out to the side to link his fingers through hers before she could stop him. She didn't, she didn't even pull away, "So, what do we do about the frozen lady?" The Doctor opened his mouth, ready to ramble around the fact he had absolutely no idea when they were both bathed in a faint glow from the first floor of the grand house. Up in the window Clara waved tentatively at them, the Doctor replying with a hesitant one of his own while Danni waved enthusiastically.

Clara motioned for them both to come upstairs, which the Doctor wasn't too convinced about. He motioned between himself and Danni before pointing up at Clara, who nodded and motioned again. He turned to Danni, huddling them both away from Clara's view.

"Right, I'll tell her that we're leaving and we're not going up." He told her lowly, making a crossing motion before pushing away from himself with both hands.

"Let me tell her." Danni replied and he nodded, it'd probably not hurt so much coming from his beautiful Danni-Girl. They both turned around and Danni beamed, holding both thumbs up before pointing to Clara, "Five minutes!" She shout-whispered, putting as much force as she could behind the whisper without actually saying it loudly. She held up her hand, fingers and thumb splayed to indicate the five minutes. Clara beamed and disappeared behind the curtains as the Doctor stared at Danni, mouth open.

"Oh, she thinks we're coming now." Danni exclaimed with a mock sigh, "Oh well, let's go. Can't leave her waiting." She jumped down off the edge, the skirt poofing around her legs, "It'll take me a while to shimmy back up that pipe again." She stared up at him expectantly and he jumped down, taking her face in his hands. He opened his mouth a couple of times, trying to form the words to tell her off, before realising he really was looking forward to investigating the woman in the ice.

"Oh…" He leant forward, placing a kiss on her forehead, "Come along, Danni-Girl!" Hand in hand, they rushed off.

_~0~0~0~_

"We should go to the children's bedroom." The Doctor whispered as Danni pushed one of the doors open, revealing what she had suspected to be the playroom. It had taken her longer than she'd suspected to climb back up the building; next time he can park on the ground like a normal person.

"We can't, it's creepy for two strangers to barge into a child's bedroom." She hissed in reply, stepping in and closing the door quietly when the Doctor had followed her.

"That's new to this regeneration too." He pointed out, "When did you start to think that?" He picked up a wooden horse off the shelving unit, making it gallop across the air.

"I've always thought that." She replied. She headed to the window, looking down at the pond down below, "I think this is the room she was in, anyway. I can see the pond from here." She pushed up on her toes to get a better look, something didn't seem right about the pond.

"She won't be able to find us." He grumbled as she gasped, realising that she could see the reflection of the moon on the water, "We're both fantastic hiders."

"Doctor, the pond's thawed!" She cried and he rushed over, trying his best not to nudge her out of the way as he looked out.

"That's not good." He declared.

"_Naughty, naughty children!"_ Both their heads snapped around at the sound of the old lady's voice cackling in the next room. The Doctor grabbed her hand, dragging her over to what appeared to be a puppet tent.

"Get down!" He commanded, pushing her down behind it and joining her on the floor as the door was flung open.

"What do we do?" A little girl cried in panic as the door was bolted shut. The old governess began to try and beat her way through the door as the Doctor pulled his screwdriver out, shaking it a couple of times before holding it up to his ear, but not setting it off.

"Frannie, Frannie, imagine her melting." Clara commanded, her words coming out quickly in her panic.

"What?!" The little girl, Frannie, exclaimed.

"In your head, melt her." Clara shouted.

"I can't!" Frannie cried, sounding terrified.

"I'm getting impatient!" There were a few more bangs then the door flew open, "You have been VERY naughty!" Danni peaked over the edge of the opening for the puppets, seeing the see-through ice-woman for only a moment before the Doctor pulled her back down.

"What about the man? You said the man was here, the cloud man and his wife." The young boy with Clara and Frannie rambled out.

"Stay down." The Doctor hissed, pulling a puppet onto his hand before using his thumb and finger to make it move.

"Punch?" She asked in the same hushed tones. He smirked wolfishly, making the puppet nod.

"Well, he's not, is he?" Clara snapped, frustrated and terrified herself.

"Where's the Doctor?" The boy asked again.

"I don't know!" Clara cried as the Doctor put the puppet above his head.

"Doctor? Doctor who?" He passed it the screwdriver, making it set it up. The governess shrieked before exploding, the ice shards scattering throughout the room. The Doctor shot up from his spot and Danni rushed out and over to the two children, "That's the way to do it!"

"Are you okay?" Danni asked the two children, brushing the shards off their nightclothes, "I'm Danni, he's the Doctor and you're going to be okay."

"You've come to stop my bad dreams?" Frannie asked hopefully and Danni nodded, rubbing her arm in comfort.

"The Doctor will." She promised, "He's brilliant like that." She ruffled the boy's hair as the Doctor knelt on the floor next to where the governess has last been, scanning the wet patches with his screwdriver.

"Where did she go? Will she come back?" Frannie asked him. He looked over his shoulder at the young girl before turning back to his screwdriver, the end popping out as he flicked his wrist and he read the results.

"No, don't worry. She's currently draining through your carpet." He stood up, turning around to face them as he tossed the screwdriver in the air, "New setting, anti-freeze, and you're very welcome, by the way."

"I'm very grateful." Clara told him honestly, "I knew you'd come."

"No, you didn't," The Doctor snapped, "because we don't."

"Yes we do." Danni interrupted and he shot her an annoyed look. She challenged it with one of her own, "He just won't admit it."

"This isn't the sort of thing we do any more." He told both of them firmly, because this was a one time deal. He took his scarf off, chucking it to one side as he began to pace the room, "Next time you're in trouble, don't expect us to..." He trailed off, coming to a stop in front a mirror that hung on the wall. He slowly walked towards it, his eyes trained on the small piece of fabric tied around his neck in a slightly skewed bow. Clara and the children rushed over behind him, seeing his attention being pulled away from them.

"What is it? What's wrong?" Clara asked quickly, wondering if she had to get the children out of the room.

"Sorry, it's just..." He pointed to the bowtie he could see in the mirror, "Didn't know I'd put it on. Old habits..." He straightened it, amazed at how much more himself he looked and felt with the tie around his neck. He looked up, seeing Danni stood to the side, hands clasped in front of her, "You never said…"

"I like it." She replied with a soft smile, "Bow ties are cool." The grin on his face grew as Clara frowned next to him, feeling the distinct chill the room had taken on.

"It's cooler." She declared and Danni frowned; she was right. Danni darted to the window, seeing the snow falling rapidly outside.

"Yeah, it is, isn't it? It is very cool. Bow ties are cool!" The Doctor rambled.

"No, the room. The room is getting colder." Clara insisted as Danni looked over her shoulder.

"Doctor, it's snowing outside!" She called over and he turned to see the rug move, a bulge appearing as the ice crackled, the governess coming back to life.

"She's coming back!" Frannie exclaimed, back to being terrified, "What's she going to do? Is she going to punish me?" Danni rushed over, helping Clara shield the children from the impending danger as the Doctor stood in front of them, sonic at the ready.

"Uh... uh..." He set it off, but the bulge kept growing as she repaired herself. He smacked the screwdriver against his hand, but it still didn't work so he rushed over to stand in front of Danni, "She's learnt not to melt. Of course, she's not really a governess, she's just a beast. She's going to eat you."

"Doctor!" Danni admonished, turning to Frannie who whimpered in fright, "Of course she's not going to eat you. But we need to run, now." She held her hand out to the little girl, who clung to her and Clara grabbed her brother's hand as they all ran out of the room into the hallway. Midway the two women made the children hold each other's hands, ushering them in front of them as Clara followed them towards the stairs, Danni falling to the Doctor's side and taking his hand in hers.

The door opened downstairs, just across from the stairs and a man in a suit appeared, looking cross as the children bounded down the stairs, "Children, what is exp…" He trailed off as he spotted the two strangers following his governess, "Who the devil are you?! What are you doing in my house?"

"It's OK!" The Doctor exclaimed, "I am your governess' gentleman friend and this is my wife, and we've just been upstairs," he clapped his hands together, "kissing!" Danni shook her head, grimacing as Clara stared at him, wide eyed in disbelief.

A maid suddenly appeared from behind the stairs, flailing as she ran up the man, whose confusion seemed to be overriding his anger.

"Captain Latimer, in the garden, there's snowmen!" She cried, sounding incredibly northern compared to the others' southern accents. She turned, running towards the front door, "And they're just growing, out of nowhere, all by themselves - look!" She chucked the door open, expecting to see a bunch of snowmen staring at her, but was instead greeted by Vastra and Jenny.

"Good evening, I'm a lizard woman from the dawn of time and this is my wife!" Vastra announced, a large amount of amusement in her voice as the maid screamed and headed back to her employer as Strax appeared from the same way she'd appeared from in the first place.

"This dwelling is under attack! Remain calm, human scum!" He commanded in his most authoritative voice. The maid screamed a final time before falling to the floor in a dead faint, landing at Captain Latimer's feet. The Doctor and Danni headed down the stairs, both of them briefly checking to make sure the maid was okay before smiling at Latimer, the Doctor patting him on the arm.

"So! Any questions?" He asked brightly. Latimer stared at him for a moment before looking up at Clara.

"You have a... gentleman friend?" He asked, sounding wounded. Clara sighed, rolling her eyes like she should have been expecting that whilst the Doctor's brows furrowed, why was that important?

"Actually, he's mine." Danni snapped from his side and his gaze shot to her, startled by the venom in her voice. She was glaring at Latimer, offended he'd even suggest anything of the sort, "You'd all do very well to remember that." With that, she dragged the Doctor into the sitting room Latimer had excited. The Doctor tried to hide his glee at the fact that Danni had shown genuine jealously at someone claiming him as someone else's. He needed to get her jealous more often, perhaps they'd get back to kissing soon.

_~0~0~0~_

_Here's the next chapter! Nothing really happens, just setting some stuff up, getting them to almost kiss but then not... You know, the usual XD_

_Enjoy, my pretties! And thanks for all the love, I really do love it!_

_Oh, and I posted a oneshot in my Outtakes for Danni's birthday. A little Danni/Ten fluff if you're into that, go check it out_!


	5. The First Companion

As they all watched Doctor pace around the small room, checking himself out in the mirror and, figuring everything out, Danni could feel both hearts pounding in her chest, something that would still catch her off guard, despite having them for over a year. He was in his element, asking questions, rambling out his thought process and having the time of his life. He was made to be this man, the one who may not always fix things, but the man who always tried. With that look, in that outfit, giving out that energy, he was just so sexy. She tried to hide it, tried to look anywhere but at her husband.

Clara noticed. She'd spent enough time in pubs over her small years to see someone completely enraptured by someone else. She wasn't sure what had happened that made the woman next to her hesitant to show affection to the man she'd married, but it seemed such a shame for this rift to be in between the two. Danni had been so kind to Clara, making sure she'd felt safe and tried to help her get away with her memories in tack despite her husband's obvious need for them to be left alone. When this was over, she was determined to get to the bottom of it.

"Why's she so important?" Jenny asked about the Ice Lady currently still trying to break her way down the stairs to attack them.

"Because she's a perfect duplication of human DNA in ice crystal form." The Doctor replied, picking up a discarded glass of whiskey and heading to Latimer, giving him it as he really seemed to need it, "The ultimate fusion of snow and humanity." He paused in front of a mirror, checking his teeth as he spoke, pausing slightly to check his breath because he was going to do it. Just a quick kiss, break the habit they'd fallen into, "To live here, the snow needs to evolve - and she's the blueprint. She's what they need to become."

"So they want to become more human?" Danni asked quietly, "Become half human? Like a hybrid? To be used as a weapon?" He paced over, his eyebrows furrowing at her scared tone as he looked her over. _Like a hybrid?_ Like _her_.

"No." He promised, "Not more human, just more like humans." He snapped his fingers and pointed at Clara, "When the snow melted last night, did the pond?

"No." Clara replied instantly. Just what he'd thought. Danni didn't look reassured over this, which just wouldn't do at all. He reached over, running his hand through her hair to cup her cheek. The slight grimace on her face told him she wasn't entirely comfortable with the public show of affection, but she didn't pull away.

"Have you been worrying about this all year?" He asked her quietly and she shrugged. He hadn't known, she'd not mentioned it at all through all the attempts to get him out of the TARDIS. Neither of them had talked about anything, that was their problem. Their time together had always been so short, they'd never bogged it down with anything bad, but now they were never going to move forward unless one of them did something about it.

"River." Was what she offered as an explanation. A human with Time Lord DNA, who had been turned into a weapon against him. The only other human Time Lord mix she'd heard of, why wouldn't she be worried?

"If they get a hold of this Ice Woman, what does that mean?" Madame Vastra asked, happy that they seemed to be getting back on track, but also very aware of the impending danger the pair always seemed to forget about.

"Living ice that will never melt." The Doctor replied, letting Danni go and turning, walking between all the other occupants of the room, wringing his hands, "If the snow gets hold of that creature on the stairs, it will learn to make more of them. It will build an army of ice. And it will be the last day of humanity on this planet." He leant on the back of a chair, shoulders heavy under the weight of the threat that had become their problem despite how much he had tried to keep them away from all of this.

The doorbell rung and his face hardened in anger. That was going to be Dr Simeon, wasn't it? Probably wanting to make some sort of deal for the Ice Woman. If it wasn't for that stupid man, with his stupid snow then none of this would have happened. It was all _his_ fault.

The Doctor cracked his neck, pushing off the chair and storming towards the door, "Stay here." Danni started to follow him and shot his arm out to the side, stopping her in his tracks, "You too."

"What?" She exclaimed, "Why?"

"Because I said so. Do as I say." He replied childishly, "_Stay here._" And with that he left the room, leaving a very stunned Danni in his wake. She looked at Clara, her mouth opened slightly. Since when did he demand she did as he said? Who did he think he was?

"Well, that won't do at all." Danni snapped, "Come on Clara." She reached out, grabbing the other woman by the arm and dragging her out of the room. The Doctor, who had been looking at the Ice Woman at the top of the stairs, spun around as his wife stormed into the hallway with Clara in tow.

"I told you to stay in there." He told her and she narrowed her eyes.

"Not going to happen." She snapped, "You're not doing this alone, we're here to help, right Clara?" Clara nodded, straightening and standing next to Danni, a duo, a team who were not about to back down because of some man.

"Right." She agreed. The Doctor clenched his hands, stepping closer to Danni, ignoring Clara completely.

"You're safer in there." He hissed.

"No, I'm safer with you." She countered quickly.

"No you're not." He replied and her she looked over him suspiciously. What happened to 'Hold my hand and don't let go'? He'd always been like that, wanting her by his side so he knew she was okay.

"Since when?"

"Since I killed you." He snarled, "Now get back in there and take your _companion_ with you. I don't want you here." She watched him head for the door, effectively ending the small argument. Her hearts twinged, she felt her chest tighten as she remembered him after Manhattan, telling her she disgusted him. She'd felt safe again, and he still didn't want her.

"Oi, Spaceman!" Clara suddenly snapped, startling them both with the nickname Danni and Donna had both used. The Doctor turned around, looking as surprised as he felt as Clara grabbed Danni by the front of her dress, pulled her down the inch she needed to slam her lips onto hers. Danni froze, eyes wide as the Doctor's mouth fell open.

Once he realised what had happened, he stormed over and tore Clara off her, looking murderous, "Get off my wife."

"Why?" Clara challenged, "You don't want 'er."

"Yes I do." He snapped back, fuming.

"Then don't tell her you don't!" Clara wasn't sure why it had made her so angry, but the need to make him apologise to Danni almost overwhelmed her. But she also knew he loved his wife more than anything, so a nudge in the right direction was all he needed.

"Of course I want…" He turned to Danni, whose fingers were hovering just in front of her lips, the distressed look on her face had him forcing her to look at him, "I do want you." He promised, "I don't want you here because I want you safe, okay?" She locked eyes with him and he was surprised to see them shining with tears.

"She kissed me." She whispered forlornly. He smiled softly, moving her hand from her mouth.

"Never again." He promised, tapping her on the lips with his own finger, "Those are mine, Danni-Girl." She smiled, giggling slightly and he straightened, fixing his bowtie happily. He loved making her giggle, it was such an adorable noise. He held his hand out to her, wiggling his fingers that had her mind flashing back to his Tenth self and she took it, letting him walk her to the door. He opened it to reveal a rather stern looking man in a top hat, who Danni guessed was the Dr Simeon the Doctor had visited before. The reminder of what was happening had the Doctor's face fall into a firm expression of his own and he stepped out of the house, letting go of Danni's hand to walk up to the man, trying to intimidate him. Dr Simeon, however, looked distinctly unimpressed.

"Release her to us. You have five minutes." He said through clenched teeth, the snowmen behind him growing to support the threat. He turned and walked away, the Doctor glaring after him before turning and running into the house, slamming the large wooden door shut.

"We need to get her out of here - but keep her away from them." He told the two women, heading towards the stairs.

"How?" Clara asked, following him and Danni.

"With this." He reached into an umbrella stand by the foot of the stairs, showing her it with a flourish as he topped by Captain Latimer, who had come out to see what was happening, "Do I always have to state the obvious?"

"Those creatures outside, what are they?" Latimer asked him.

"No danger to you, as long as I get that thing out of here!" The Doctor promised, knowing that the man was worried about his children. The Doctor pointed at him, then at the door behind him, "You, in there - now." He then took Danni's hand back in his again, dragging her partway up the stairs. He pulled out his screwdriver, pointing it at the force field holding the Ice Woman in place and setting it off with a continuous squeal.

"What are we doing?" Danni asked him, standing a couple of steps behind him due to lack of space.

"Between you and me, I can't wait to find out." He told her with a smile, "Hold tight, Danni-Girl." She beamed but reached behind her, grabbing Clara's hand, tugging her up as the Doctor pointed the screwdriver over his shoulder, moving the force field behind them, "Right, if you look after everyone here, then we can..." He turned as he spoke to Clara, seeing she was with them and not on the other side of the field as he'd expected, "Clara!"

"She grabbed me!" Clara exclaimed, pointing at Danni to relieve some of her own guilt before spotting the Ice Woman about to attack them, "Behind you!" The Ice Woman lunged at them, taking a swing at them as she did but the trio ducked in unison, pushing past her to run up the stairs. The Doctor kept a firm hold on Danni's hand, whereas Danni made sure she kept a grip on Clara.

"Word of warning," Danni panted as they headed up the staircase, "there's a lot of running."

"Why are you warning her?" The Doctor asked.

"Everyone should know, it can be quite a shock!"

"That's the way to do it!" The Ice Woman exclaimed again as she tried her best to keep up with them.

"Why does she keep saying that?" Clara asked in her panic as they fell to a stop at the top of the stairs.

"Mirroring, random mirroring." The Doctor replied, "The We need to get on the roof." He took a swing at the Ice Woman with the umbrella, but Clara wasn't having any of his theatrics. She tightened her grip on Danni's hand, pulling the other woman away from the old Governess. Danni really liked this idea, so she helped by dragging the Doctor along with her, the momentum of the two women causing him to stumble but follow them.

"This way!" Clara cried.

"I do the dragging!" The Doctor protested, "I do the hand grabbing, that's my job, that's always me!"

_~0~0~0~_

The Doctor finally gained control of the dragging, meaning that when they reached the window onto the roof, he was the first one through. Danni let Clara go next, after all it was kind of her fault that she was being dragged around by two Time Lords. Clara had needed a quick shove through, her bustle getting stuck slightly in the frame but a push from Danni had her scrambling to move out of the way. Danni pushed herself up, perfectly capable of getting through on her own, but the Doctor had other plans. He grabbed her arm and pulled, hard, causing her to lose her footing and she shouted in surprise as she fell onto him.

The Doctor wrapped his arms around her, making sure he took the brunt of the fall as they tumbled onto the snow-covered roof together.

"You," He started quietly, his eyes drifting down her face and he became very distracted by how close she was, "You should be more careful."

"That's what you get for pulling me." Danni replied, blushing at how it sounded once it came out of her mouth, "I mean…"

"Oh Lord." Clara sighed, walking over, "What's the plan?" Danni slowly climbed off the Doctor, brushing herself down as the Doctor tried his hardest not to be angry with Clara. She was right, they had to focus, but despite how inquisitive and brave she was, he just wanted a little bit longer with Danni.

"Who said I've got a plan?" He retorted.

"Course you've got a plan." Clara retorted, picking up the discarded umbrella off the floor, "You took that."

"Maybe I'm an idiot." The Doctor pointed out as the Ice Woman cried out her repeated phrase from that little bit closer to them.

"You're not, you're clever. Really clever." The Doctor smirked, his ego loving the declaration. Yes, he was smart, wasn't he?

"I am, aren't I?" He replied, "But it's not my plan." He chucked the umbrella to Danni, who caught it with one hand. She looked at it, surprised with herself, "Show her." He told his wife happily. Danni turned to Clara, who was staring expectantly back at her and Danni nodded, holding the umbrella aloft.

"Watch this." She told her with a grin before hooking it onto the bottom of the ladders that were hidden from view. A hard tug had them coming down and Clara looked stunned.

"Where did they come from?" She exclaimed and Danni shrugged, spinning the umbrella around and holding it out to Clara.

"Why don't you take a look?"

"That's the way to do it!" The Governess appeared in the window, turning into snow as she started to make her way through it.

"Why were we running up?" The Doctor challenged, "How could being here save us?"

"If we'd been escaping, we'd be climbing down the building." Clara reasoned, letting her mind work through what she thought was their train of thought, "If we'd been hiding, we'd be on the other side of the roof. But we're standing right here."

"So?" The Doctor asked leadingly.

"So, there's something up there you need." Clara reasoned and Danni nodded.

"The most wondrous thing is hiding up there." She explained as the Doctor motioned to it.

"You first." He told Clara, who shook her head.

"After you." She countered, "We're both wearing dresses, eyes front, soldier!"

"My eyes are always front!" He defended, looking to Danni for help. She just raised her eyebrow, knowing that wasn't true and he grumbled as he headed up the ladder first.

"Mine aren't." Danni told him, following her husband up the ladders. He looked over his shoulder to see her watching him appreciatively.

"Stop it!" He replied cheekily and she shook her head.

"Never." She promised.

_~0~0~0~_

Clara had been full of questions as they headed away from the ground and towards the TARDIS. It was a trait the Doctor loved in his potential companions, so Danni could see why Clara would end up travelling with him. She wouldn't mind her being there, actually. She'd really enjoyed meeting Clara when she'd jumped forward that last time, and although a lot of it still wasn't making too much sense, Danni would explain it all away.

After all, she did die after the Ponds, technically, so Clara hadn't been lying. And she also could have introduced this younger Clara to all her favourite bands and television shows. It'd be nice to start from the beginning of a companion and make her way through their lives in the right order, seeing them be allowed to shine as the Doctor always allowed them to. She wouldn't be the new companion one minute, and the last one the next. Danni would be there for everything.

Including them seeing the TARDIS for the first time, something she only managed to do with Martha. Clara had not taken to being told that the TARDIS was more than a box, thinking the pair were making fun of them.

"That's no more a box than you are a governess." The Doctor told her as he held the front door open for Danni, letting her walk under his arm as he leant in closer, "Your first companion is about to see inside the TARDIS for the first time."

"_My _companion?" She whispered and he nodded.

"If you want." She stared at him, totally amazed as Clara stormed in after them, "Ready?"

"For your information, I'm not sweet on the inside, and I'm certainly not," The Doctor turned around, flipping the switches on the TARDIS console and illuminating them all in the bright light. She paused, staring at the room in disbelief, "little." The Doctor nudged Danni, who smiled and stepped forward.

"She's called the TARDIS." Danni started quietly, feeling slightly disconnected from the experience. She'd never even considered having to give this speech, "It stands for Time and Relative Dimension in Space and she is the most glorious thing to have ever exist. And she's…"

"And she's ours." The Doctor finished, feeling a great sense of joy at what he'd set in motion. Danni had obviously taken a shine to Clara, and maybe this was the start of seeing herself in the same light he did.

"But it's... Look at it, it's..." Clara stuttered, looking around as she tried to work out what was happening around her.

"It's okay." Danni reassured her, "She's supposed to be like that." Clara shook her head once then dashed outside to do the classic 'check the exterior for cheap tricks', Danni turned to the Doctor, eyes wide, "Why are you doing this?" He cupped her face, stroking her cheek with him thumb.

"You are not a weapon." He promised, "You're not like River, but you are part Time Lord. This is the only way I know how to do that."

"You're trying to show me how to be a Time Lord?" She asked quietly and he pulled out a new TARDIS key from his pocket, one he'd always carried around just in case and placed it in her palm.

"When you're ready." He told her and Clara rushed back in, almost stumbling over her feet and ending their moment.

"It's smaller on the outside!" She exclaimed and the Doctor stared, stunned as Danni bit out a laugh.

"Actually, she's a she, not an 'it'." Danni corrected as the Doctor shook his head and looked down at his wife.

"That is a first." He commented and she nodded in agreement.

"The whole thing is." She pointed out. Clara walked over, staring at all of the controls in wonder.

"Is she magic? Is she a machine?" She rambled out, dashing around to try and see it all at once.

"She's a spaceship." Danni replied, "The best spaceship in all the universe."

"A spaceship?" She walked up a set of stairs, stopping halfway to get a better look across the room. She was amazing, she made no sense, what was happening?

"She's our home." Danni explained as Clara walked back down and joined them.

"Is there a kitchen?" Clara asked and the Doctor shook his head.

"Another first." The Doctor said and Danni nodded.

"There is." Danni told her, "But it can be quite hard to find." Clara shrugged, looking at the monitor and not understanding anything it was showing.

"I don't know why I asked that, it's just... I like making soufflés." She explained offhandedly.

"Soufflés?!" The Doctor asked, the word reminding him of the Dalek Asylum, of the girl who had fought being turned into a Dalek and had won. Poor Oswin. He glanced down at Danni, he didn't want this moment to be destroyed by memories of Soufflé girl. She deserved this new start and, he'd realised as he saw her reaction at being dismissed, she needed more stability. As long as he'd know her, her life had not made any sense, but at least she'd had her past. Now that had been ripped out from underneath her as well, because of him. He was going to make sure that until they figured it out, she felt secure, and having a companion to focus on would help that like it'd helped him.

"Why are you showing me all this?" Clara asked them and Danni shrugged.

"Because you're nice." She replied, "But you're determined. You're clever and you can't stay still." She held her hand out, the TARDIS key in-between her fingers, holding it proudly, "And all you want to do is sore." Clara reached out and took the key, tears forming in her eyes.

"I don't know why I'm crying..." She stated and Danni beamed, closing her hand over the key.

"I do." She replied, "Happy crying, it's all the rage."

"Does everyone cry?" Clara asked and Danni shrugged.

"Probably." She admitted, "I'm not the one who normally does this, though. That's his job." She nodded towards the Doctor, "He's the expert."

"More of an ancient amateur." The Doctor downplayed.

"But you wanted to be left alone." Clara protested, "You didn't even want me near your wife."

"It's not my choice, it's hers." The Doctor replied, a small, loving smile on his face as he watched her rush to the doors to look out. She didn't like sitting in her spot anymore, the universe outside scared her now, he'd ruined that for her. But she still loved having a peak at the Earth below them. He could feel it, hear all of the plans she was running through, where to take Clara, comparing herself to him. He turned back to Clara, "You never know why, you only know who."

"And I'm who?" The Doctor shrugged.

"I'm as surprised as you are." He said and she smacked his arm.

"Oi, you don't get to say that Spaceman." She scolded. He opened his mouth to ask where she'd got that nickname from when it happened, the shriek that made his hearts go cold.

"DOCTOR!" Danni screamed and they both spun to see Danni in the arms of the Governess.

"No!" The Doctor screamed as she was dragged out of the door backwards, struggling hard to get away.

"Let me go!" Danni screamed, "Please, don't!"

"Let her go!" The Doctor shouted, aiming his screwdriver at the Ice Woman as he chased after her, "Let go of her!"

"Theta, Theta please!" Danni screamed, not caring Clara was there, "I'm scared, don't let me go!" He froze, arm outstretched as he remembered her begging him the same thing as he held her out of the TARDIS. The Governess had her at the end of the cloud, he wasn't going to be able to save her.

"Get off!" Clara shouted, running as hard as she could to tackle the Ice Woman. Something inside her snapped, she could see Danni about to die and every fibre of her being had to save her. Every inch away was an inch too far, nothing else mattered apart from getting the Time Lady free.

The Governess roared in anger, letting go of Danni in her rage at being attacked and grabbed Clara. The pair tumbled over the edge, Clara smiling in a serene sense of satisfaction as she disappeared over the edge of the cloud.

"CLARA!" Danni screamed, horrified and terrified as she dropped the platform under the cloud, seeing that she was already out of reach, "No, Clara!" The Doctor dropped by her side, staring in a horror of his own. Danni looked at him and he could see it in her eyes, the heartbreak as she went over it again and again in her own head. Her first companion, her friend and Clara had died to save her.

"Danni…" He started but she shot up, shaking her head.

"No, no, no, no!" She screamed, turning and running away from him, down that stairs, panting and crying as she did her best to get to the ground as quickly as possible. Why did she do it? Danni might've survived, the Doctor regenerated once from falling of a pylon, wouldn't have this been the same? She slid down the ladder and back into the house, she knew Clara survived, she had to survive. She travelled with the Doctor, she kept him from being totally alone. Clara couldn't die because of her! He couldn't be on his own again because of her!

She ran down the stairs, holding her skirt aloft so she didn't trip over it as she headed for the front door. She made it to the bottom floor as Madame Vastra came flying out, seeing the woman having no eyes but for the front door.

"Danielle!" She cried, hoping to stop the woman in her tracks but Danni shook her head, her face shining and her cheeks red.

"I have to get to Clara." She panted but Madame Vastra grabbed her, stopping her going outside.

"It's not safe out there." Vastra told her but Danni still struggled.

"I have to get to Clara." She repeated, "It's all my fault, I have to save her."

"The Doctor's brought her in." Vastra told her, "It's too late." She felt Danni collapse in her arms, shaking as she sobbed.

"No, she can't…" She stuttered, "I killed her, it's all my fault!"

"You don't know that." Vastra tried to reassure her, although she did. She saw the barmaid fall from the sky, the Ice Woman smashing into pieces around her. Her scans told her the woman had died, but she needed to get Danni into the room.

"I should have told her to run." She sobbed, "I should have made her stay. I did this!" Madame Vastra pulled her into the room where everyone was waiting for the front doors to the TARDIS to open, all hoping but knowing that when the Doctor came out, carrying Clara, that the woman was dead. He looked up to see his wife break in the arms of their friend, screaming Clara's name again as he held her dead body tightly.

_~0~0~0~_

_It's the First of December! The Holidays have officially started, so I'm super happy and I thought to myself 'how can I make myself sad?'_

_And so this happened XD Just wanted to hurt Danni that little bit more!_

_You're reviews are like food to this poor author, and I thank each and every one of you for leaving me one! For those interested, I finally got around to updating my Sherlock fanfic with a subpar chapter, with the hopes of doing the same with my Supernatural one this week. Danni just won't get out of my head XD_


	6. The Great Intelligence

Strax scanned over Clara as the children watched on in sorrow. She was alive, but circling and while they had very precious time left, the Doctor and Danni were in the TARDIS. Madame Vastra watched as Captain Latimer lashed out at Strax, his anger caused by worry and grief at what had happened to the governess he'd obviously had feelings for. Even anxious as she was, Vastra entered the TARDIS to try and talk some sense and reason into the two Time Lords. Danni was sat on the set of stairs down to the lower level, hugging herself and shaking as the Doctor stood at the console, scanning a piece of ice from the Ice Woman, the rest in a London Underground tin.

"Isn't the creature still a danger? It could reform." She asked him, trying to pull his attention but he only glanced at her before picking up the next piece of ice.

"No, not in here." He muttered.

"Then you should be with Miss Clara." She retorted and he shook his head.

"She's going to be fine, I know she is," He replied, reading the results from his scan and putting the ice into the tin, "She has to be."

"Doctor, her injuries are severe. That equipment will bring back anyone for a while, but long term..." Vastra tried to explain but he slammed his hands down on the console in frustration, startling her slightly.

"She's going to be okay!" He exclaimed angrily, turning to Vastra, and moving closer to her, "She's going to be fine, because look at her." He motioned with his eyes to his wife, "I gave her hope. Clara had brought her out of herself in a way she hadn't been since before I…" He ran his hand through his hair, "I just wanted her to be happy. I thought having Clara being _her_ companion would show her she was still Danni, stop her being so scared. Now Clara's…" He looked towards the door, "She didn't need to feel that sorrow, I'm killing her all over again. Clara's going to be fine, because I need her to help Danni."

"Doctor?" He spun to see Danni stood there, wringing her hands in front of her anxiously.

"Danni..." He moved over, taking her by the arms as he looked her over, trying to see some part of her that didn't break his hearts.

"I think we should go see Clara." She told him.

"She'll be fine." He promised her, rubbing her arm reassuringly, "There's no point seeing her until then." She smiled weakly.

"There are so many people I've not been able to see goodbye to." She explained, "I don't want Clara to be one of them."

_~0~0~0~_

Clara's eyes fluttered open, the mere action of opening her eyelids feeling like the hardest thing she's ever had to do. Her whole body felt uncomfortably relaxed, there was no movement there and it felt almost unnatural. She could vaguely remember falling, falling so far and then she was on a table, Danni knelt next to her as she held her hand and smiled with the shakiest smile she'd ever seen.

"You're sad." She whispered, it hurt too much to speak and Danni nodded, still trying to smile.

"I'm worried, sweetie." She whispered in reply, "Are you in any pain? Strax can help, if you need anything at all."

"No, I'm fine." She promised, everything inside of her screaming not to worry the kind woman further, "I don't want you to be sad." Danni laughed hollowly, placing a kiss on the back of the hand she held tightly.

"Tough, you've hooked me, Clara." She said teasingly.

"They all think I'm going to die, don't they?" Clara whispered and Danni nodded once, minutely but unmissable at the same time.

"They do." She admitted, "You did a very silly thing, Clara."

"Most probably." Clara retorted and Danni giggled again even as she started crying, "Don't cry, your 'usband won't like me if you do that."

"My husband can bugger off then, can't he?" Danni replied teasingly.

"Oi." The Doctor exclaimed, faking offense as he knelt down by Danni, "I can hear you, you know?"

"Good." Clara stated weakly, "She's upset, you should be looking after 'er."

"Always." He promised, "But you'll help, won't you?"

"I'll be better at it than you." She corrected, her eyes falling shut because she just couldn't keep them open anymore. Danni pushed up onto her knees, stroking the side of her face.

"Whatever happens, Clara, I don't want you to be scared." She whispered, "I was so scared, and I felt so alone and I'm never going to let you feel like that." She placed a kiss on her forehead, "You're not alone, Clara. I'm always here."

"I know, Danni-Girl." Clara whispered, "The green lady... she said the Doctor were the saver of worlds once."

"He still is." Danni corrected quickly, "He thinks he can stop, but his hearts are too big for that."

"Is he going to save this one?"

"Definitely." She promised, kissing Clara on the forehead again, "But you have to rest. It's Christmas, you can't miss it." With that, Danni stood up, the Doctor following her. She looked up at her husband, a determined look on her face.

"How do we do it?" She asked him, "How do we save Clara?" He looked down at her, not having a proper answer for her. He took another look at Clara, who looked so peaceful he was worried she'd already gone. He placed a kiss on the top of Danni's hair before straightening his tie and yanking the tin filled with ice out of Jenny's hand.

"Stay here." He told Danni, "I won't be a moment." She nodded, this time having no intention of following him as he stormed out of the room, coming back only maybe a minute later, lacing his fingers through hers, pulling her back into the TARDIS.

"Where are we going?" She asked him, "What about Clara?" He handed her the tin as he set exactly where he needed to go, there was no room for mistakes, he had to be more precise than he'd been in a long time.

"To the office." He replied, "We're going to stop Dr Simeon and his talking snow, then we're coming back for Clara and you're going to take your companion on her first trip." The TARDIS shuddered as she set in motion, but there was no flying about, no going absolutely tonto as if even she could sense the seriousness of the situation, "This is my fault," He rambled, talking as if Danni wasn't listening, "I'm going to fix it, then Clara will be fine."

"I don't think it works like that, sweetie." Danni broke to him and he shook his head.

"After everything we have done, everything we have lost the universe owes us this." He snapped, turning to her with pleading eyes, "Don't you think we deserve this?" She nodded slowly.

"We do." She agreed, "But the universe doesn't care." The echo of his words to Strax wounded him, his cynicism coming back at him from the one person who'd always changed his mind. He placed the tin down on the console slowly, running a hand over the top of it before turning to face her, stepping as close as he dared to her.

"Then we'll make it care." He replied, "We'll save the world, we'll save Clara and then we're going to find out what made you regenerate. The universe might not want to help us, but that's the deal."

"That's not how it works." She insisted, "I'm so _tired_ of trying to feel like I make a difference, Theta. The universe doesn't care about us, it never has. You were right, why even bother?"

"Because we have to." He told her gently, "Because if we don't try, if we don't bother then no one else will. This pain you're feeling," He took hold of her hand, bringing it up to his chest, between his hearts, "shows that even if the universe doesn't care, we do. And we have to keep trying, because otherwise other people are going to feel like this, and we have to stop that. Together." She could feel both his hearts beating under his chest, and she spread her fingers out of his grip until her hand was flat against his ribs.

"Is it because we have two hearts?" She asked quietly. He smiled at her thoughtful look as she tried to work out what was going around in her head.

"Most likely, Danni-Girl." He replied. She nodded, swallowing and clenching her fingers together, taking her time to move her hand off his chest.

"Let's do it then." She declared, still sounding unsure, "Let's save the world."

_~0~0~0~_

Dr Simeon walked into his office to find both Danni and the Doctor already waiting for him, feet up on the desk while Danni stood behind him, hand on his shoulder as she tried to soothe him. They'd been waiting for a while, each second he'd become more and more agitated and now she could feel how tense he was, just how angry he felt at the man they were waiting for.

"You promised us something. Have you brought it?" Simeon demanded, sounding almost desperate as he stormed over to the desk, staring down at the Doctor.

"Big fella here's been very quiet while you've been out - which is only to be expected considering who he really is." The Doctor replied instead, Danni looking down at him in confusion because he'd not actually mentioned anything to her about it. He stood up, picking up the tin and spun it in between his fingers, "Know what this is, big fella?" He held it up, front towards the giant snow globe in the middle of the room, something that Danni had not been expecting.

"I do not understand these markings." A male voice declared, obviously coming from the snow globe, surprising Danni further. He could have mentioned the talking ornament when they'd been waiting.

"A map of the London Underground, 1967 - key strategic weakness in metropolitan living, if you ask me, but then I have never liked a tunnel…" The Doctor replied.

"Enough of this. We are powerful, but on this planet we are limited. We need to learn to take human form. The Governess is our most perfect replication of humanity..." As the snow ranted and raved, the Doctor took out his screwdriver, holding it behind his back and flicking through the settings, causing its voice to fluctuate until it sounded much younger than it had just been

"What's wrong with its voice?" Danni asked.

"Just stripping away the disguise." The Doctor replied, flipping the screwdriver and putting it back in his pocket.

"No, stop! Stop that! Cease, I command you!" The little boy demanded, Simeon backing away from it in horror, falling against his desk.

"Wait, so the Intelligence is just a small child?" Danni asked and the Doctor nodded.

"Simeon as a child, to be exact." He told her, "The snow has no voice without him."

"Don't listen to him, he's ruining everything!" The Intelligence cried as the Doctor walked towards Simeon, the man cowering as he regressed back to his childhood self, the voice haunting him.

"How long has the Intelligence been talking to you?" The Doctor demanded.

"I was a little boy. He was my snowman... He spoke to me." Simeon explained, his voice pattern matching that of an infant.

"But the snow doesn't talk, does it - it's just a mirror." The Doctor snapped like he was telling him off, "It just reflects back everything we think and feel and fear. You poured your darkest dreams into a snowman - and look," The Doctor jabbed behind him, pointing at the globe, "Look what it became!"

"The snow latched onto a child?" Danni asked slowly, stepping from behind the desk. Her mind immediately went to where she didn't want it to go, to the Time Lord she'd left behind in the Time War.

"It's a parasite feeding on the loneliness of a child and the sickness of an old man." The Doctor replied, "Carnivorous snow meets Victorian values... and something terrible is born."

"We can go on! And do everything we planned." The Intelligence cried, trying to convince Simeon to stay on track.

"Oh, yes, and what a plan! A world full of living ice people. Oh, dear me, how very Victorian of you." The Doctor taunted, his hands clenching at his side. He usually felt sympathy for the people on the receiving end of an alien parasite, Simeon had only been a child after all and the Intelligence had used his loneliness as a tool to get him to do their bidding. But he was just so _angry_, and he had to take it out on someone.

"What's wrong with Victorian values?" Simeon retorted, snatching the tin out of the Doctor's hands. Danni gasped in shock but the Doctor held his hand up, the action causing Simeon to pause as he ripped the lid off the tin.

"Are you sure?" The Doctor pressed and Simeon's gaze hardened.

"I have always been sure!" He replied, reaching in and pulling out, not a piece of the Ice Woman, but the memory worm. It flopped in his hand before biting down, causing the man to gargle and twitch in pain. Danni dashed forward with a horrified gasp, ready to help get that terrible thing off Simeon but the Doctor's hand shot out, stilling her.

"What have you done?" She exclaimed, "We need him to stop the Intelligence!"

"No we won't." He promised her, "Without his memory they won't have a host. No parasite without a host. Without him it will have no voice, without the governess, it will have no form." She looked down at the man, who had fallen to the ground.

"Will it kill him?" She asked quietly.

"It shouldn't." The Doctor replied and her face hardened.

"More's the pity." She muttered, surprising him.

"What... What's happening, what's happening, what did you do?" The Intelligence demanded from behind them, its voice fluctuating between the older man and the young boy voice as it sparked.

"You've got nothing left to mirror anymore." The Doctor told it proudly, wrapping his arm around her shoulders and walking her in front of the globe, "Goodbye."

"What did you... Did you... Did you..." The Intelligence stuttered as the globe seemed to shut down. The Doctor smirked, about to tell his wife that he knew it was going to be fine when the machine sparked up again, the snow flurrying around once more, "Did you really think it would be so easy?"

"That's not possible." The Doctor exclaimed, pushing Danni behind him, "How is that possible?"

"Doctor, what's happening?" Danni asked, "What about Clara?" He looked down at his wife, who was staring back hopefully, like she knew he could figure it out. The mention of Clara did trigger something in his brain, the memory of the snow outside so he dragged her over to look out the window. What had only been a small fluttering of snow had turned into a full-blown blizzard, "Oh my god…"

"But you were just Dr Simeon. You're not real, he dreamed you, how can you still exist?" The Doctor demanded, heading back over to the globe.

"Now the dream outlives the dreamer and can never die." The Intelligence replied arrogantly, "Once I was the puppet. Now I pull the strings!" The voice echoed behind them, a flash of electricity from the machine shooting into the body of Dr Simeon and raising him, frozen, from the ground.

I have tried so long to take on human form." Both Simeon and the Intelligence proclaimed, "By erasing Simeon, you made space for me. I fill him now." The body walked over, taking hold of Danni's arm and chucking her away. She yelled as she skidded across the floor, slamming into it and feeling her left elbow jar painfully. Simeon moved onto the Doctor, putting a hand on his throat and pushing him down to the ground where he pinned him.

"More than snow, more than Simeon - even this old body is strong in my control." Crushing the Doctor underneath the frozen corpse, its hand moved from his throat to his face, freezing him as the Doctor groaned in pain, "Do you feel it? Winter is coming! Winter is coming!" Danni scrambled up, arm against her body protectively as the Doctor screamed in pain, the Intelligence using Simeon to freeze him as well. She rushed behind the desk, not really thinking about it and she grabbed the wooden chair. She dragged it over, screaming in pain as she used both hands to swing it at Simeon, chucking him off the Doctor.

"Get your hands off my husband!" She shouted before dropping the chair and cradling her elbow, "Oh Lord that hurts!" The Doctor scrambled up, his body rapidly increasing in temperature as he stood next to his wife, looking down at Simeon who was groaning in pain.

"Nice arm." He told her and she shrugged as Simeon curled up.

"I'd like to take all the credit, but I doubt that was me." She retorted.

"What's happening?" The Intelligence exclaimed and the Doctor bent down to examine the man, knowing Danni was right and a chair shouldn't have done so much damage to him.

"Doctor…" Danni breathed, amazed and he looked over his shoulder to see her staring at the globe, "The snow, it's turning into… Into _rain_." She turned to the Doctor, "How can it be turning into rain?" On the floor, Simeon groaned and slumped, dying once again but the Doctor didn't care.

"The snow mirrors, that's all it does." The Doctor reasoned, "It's mirroring something else now. Something so strong, it's drowning everything else." His eyes widened as he realised why, the fact that there was a critical mass of snow at the house meant that its psychic link must have shifted. He scrambled off the floor, running back to the window and threw it open. He stuck his hand out, letting the water drip on his hand before tasting it. Salty.

"What's wrong?" Danni asked him and he turned around.

"It's not rain." He muttered, "We have to go." He dashed forward, making sure she was following him before heading into the TARDIS.

"Theta, where are we going?" She asked, shutting the door behind her, "What about the Intelligence, we can't just leave it there!" He turned to her, looking into her wide brown eyes, her hands worrying themselves in front of her. She was trying, she really was and he was going to have to break her hearts.

"The only force on Earth that could drown the snow is a whole family crying on Christmas Eve." He told her as gently as possible and he saw her flinch back at the words, alarmed and tearing up, "It's Clara."

_~0~0~0~_

Danni knelt by Clara's side, forcing herself to smile even though she felt like she was breaking inside. You only had to look at the poor barmaid to know that she had very little time left, that she was hanging on just because of them. The Doctor stood behind her, hands on her shoulders, offering her the comfort she'd tried to give to him back in Simeon's office.

"Hello, sweetie." Danni greeted as gently as possible and Clara tried to smile, "We're back from saving the world, did you miss us?"

"Did you do it?" Clara whispered and Danni shook her head, stroking her hair gently.

"No, sweetie," She replied, looking around at all the devastated people stood around her, "_You_ did. You saved us all, because we love you so very much. How are you feeling?"

"Tired." Clara told her, "But I'm not scared." Danni felt herself whimper, even if she didn't hear it. Clara was the one who was dying, but she was trying to comfort her.

"I'm so sorry, sweetie." Danni sobbed, "I would have never…"

"Shhh, Danni-Girl." Clara whispered, her eyes closing, "Don't cry, it's Christmas."

"Not without you." Danni promised, placing a kiss on her forehead, "I'm so sorry." Clara's head lolled to one side, the last of her strength leaving her.

"Run." Clara whispered weakly, the Doctor's grip tightening on Danni's shoulders as the words echoed through him, "Run, you clever boy. Take your Danni-Girl and remember."

_~0~0~0~_

_In the Dalek Asylum, in a room locked away on her own, Oswin was waiting, completely Dalek and yet still completely human inside. The Doctor had been disgusted when he'd found her chained up, completely transformed into the one thing he hated above all else. The feisty, clever, extremely flirty girl who he'd had to remind on a number of occasions that he was taken, had been the one thing he'd hated and he'd never noticed._

_Of course, he also hadn't meant to reawaken the Dalek part of her brain she'd blocked off and now he was being backed into the cold door, arms up in surrender as she cried 'Exterminate'._

"_Oswin! Oswin!" He'd begged, trailing off when he realised she was sobbing, rather than shooting._

"_Why do they hate you so much? They hate you so much. Why?" She asked, making him wonder if he'd ever heard a Dalek sound so desperate._

"_I fought them. Many, many times." He reluctantly admitted._

"_We have grown stronger in fear of you." She replied and his teeth clenched, the self-hatred made him unable to even look a Dalek in the eye, so he glanced at the floor._

"_I know. I tried to stop." _

_There was a pause, "Then run." The Dalek told him quietly and his head shot up._

"_What did you say?" He asked, confused._

"_I've taken down the force-field. The Daleks above have begun their attack." She declared, "Run!" The door behind the Doctor opened and he realised that everything was suddenly happening around him._

"_Oswin? Are you..." He asked._

"_I am Oswin Oswald." She interrupted, "I fought the Daleks. And I AM... human. Remember me."_

"_Thank you!" He told her from the bottom of his hearts._

"_Run!" She screamed and he took off in the hallway, her voice still echoing over the communication system, "_Run, you clever boy. Take your Danni-Girl and remember."

_~0~0~0~_

The Doctor re-entered the TARDIS, amazed that he'd finally confirmed it, Clara was Oswin, and Oswin was Clara. Somehow, some way they were the same girl, in his life, at two different points and he had to find out why.

His enthusiasm died at the sight of his Danni-Girl sat on the stairs, huddled in on herself. She hadn't wanted to go to the funeral, but he knew that she needed some way of paying her respects so he'd gone in her place. He took his hat off and slowly walked towards her, sitting next to her.

"Was it nice?" She asked him quietly and he nodded.

"It was sad, but it was nice." He promised, "I put the flowers on her grave, but you'll never guess who Clara was."

"She was the girl from the Dalek Asylum." Danni replied with almost no emotion and his eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"You knew?" He asked her and she nodded.

"I remembered." She corrected gently, "I'd forgotten how pretty she was, though. And so kind. She was supposed to be your next companion after the Ponds."

"Supposed to?" He asked before thinking and she turned to look at him, her eyes shining with her heartbreak.

"She was, but then she died." She replied, her voice cracking, "Because I killed her. I killed her, and now you're going to be alone without me and I can't…" He pulled her in for a hug, shushing her as she clung to him.

"This was not your fault." He promised, "And if you think you're going anywhere without me…" He pulled back, smiling as warmly as he could at her, wiping her tears away, "You and me, Danni-Girl, remember?" She stared, the phrase that normally made her giggle barely pulled anything out of her at all.

Then she leant forward, cupping his face and kissing him hard in the same movement. He froze in surprise for a moment, before he responded to her, threading his fingers through her hair as he kissed her properly for the first time since she'd regenerated.

"I've not wanted to kiss you because the last person I kissed before I regenerated was Koschei." She told him, foreheads pressed together, eyes closed, "I didn't want you to feel him there. Clara fixed that too."

"I'm glad." He replied lamely and they sat there in each other's arms. He wanted to confront the issue of Koschei, angry at the other Time Lord for twisting her head once again, making her blame herself when he knew the Master's every movement had been deliberate. They were designed to make her obey him, turn her into his own little 'pet' and he had so much work to undo all the damage.

But not yet, that could wait, "Shall we go and find out why she was Oswin?" She pulled back, looking confused, "There must be a reason, somewhere, out there. You and me, Danni-Girl, let's solve this thing together." She shook her head slowly.

"I'm never leaving the TARDIS again." She told him firmly, going against every single one of her actions in the past year.

"What?" He asked, bewildered.

"I've met Clara before." She told him, "In your future. She was supposed to travel with you, she was the new me and I've taken that away from you. Being alive when I shouldn't has stolen Clara from you, that's on _me_."

"There is no 'new you'." He defended, "There's just you. No one could ever replace you and no one is going to."

"They won't now!" She exclaimed, shaking, "I'm dangerous." She explained, pointing at the door, "I can't go out there ever again." He still looked bewildered, which frustrated her and she shot up, "You find these wonderful people, and I destroy them. It's what I do, I'm dangerous!"

"This wasn't your fault." He insisted, standing up to calm her down, berating himself for leaving her on her own for so long while he'd gone to the funeral.

"Yes it was!" She shrieked, "I was right, I'm just like River, but instead of killing you outright, I just destroy everything you love! I can't be around anyone, I have to be contained."

"Danni, I know you're upset, I understand, I do." He promised, "I've felt like that a hundred times over, but this wasn't your fault. Clara gave her life to save you willingly."

"Then no one else ever will." She swore, "No one else is dying because of my stupidity." She turned, walking up the stairs.

"Danni, wait!" She turned back around, shaking her head.

"Never again, Spaceman." She promised before disappearing into the hallway, leaving him standing there alone.

_~0~0~0~_

_Just gonna chuck this one up before I think too much about it and realise just how much I don't like it._

_Thank you all for your wonderful reviews! I just thought I'd better clarify something for all of you wondering._

_Danni jumped away from her old universe on the 23rd December 2012, two days before the Snowmen aired. So while she might have had some knowledge of some spoilers, she never made it to Clara and so actual episode content will be as new to her as it would be to Clara and the Doctor. After all, it's been five years, I doubt she remembers much about it at all :)_


	7. The Little Girl

The Doctor stood in the doorway, arms crossed as he leant against the doorframe. Danni had fallen asleep in the library again, for the second time that week, book clutched to her chest like a teddy bear. She'd made it her mission to read through the entire TARDIS library, and over the last few months she's started to make a small dent in the contents, something she was extremely proud of.

He didn't have the hearts to tell her that for every book she read, the TARDIS just replaced it with a new one she hadn't.

He was also beginning to understand her frustration at him that she'd felt over the year above London, because every time he tried to get her to leave the TARDIS the pair ended up having a massive argument and he'd storm out without her, leaving her to read her books while he didn't have a good time out in the universe.

Danni just wouldn't listen to him. She was convinced that what she was doing was right, that hiding away from the universe was what she wanted to do. If that's actually what she wanted to do, he wouldn't be throwing such a fuss about it. He'd leave her to read her books and enjoy the TARDIS, but she was so deeply unhappy that he had to get her out. She was doing to herself what the Doctor had done to himself and he'd been miserable the whole time.

He walked over and crouched down in front of her, reaching out to gently wake her with a kiss on the forehead. She groaned as she was torn from her dream, her hands flailing in front of her like his did when he talked. He couldn't help but smile, she'd picked that up from him.

"No." She muttered before blinking the darkness from her eyes, "Theta?" He nodded, brushing her hair behind her ear.

"Time to go to bed." He told her gently but she didn't want to move. She pulled him closer, hugging him tightly, "Hey, are you okay?" She shook her head, her face buried in the crook of his shoulder.

"Bad dream." She muttered. He sighed to himself, rubbing her back and placing another kiss on the top of her head.

"You're safe now." He promised, wondering if he should bring them up. He'd missed this one, but he knew he could guess who it was going to have featured.

"Did you have a good time?" She asked him, effectively stopping him from asking about it. She didn't want to talk about it, not yet. She knew he was curious, and she was so tired of waking up terrified, but she just couldn't bring herself to talk about them. Soon, but not yet.

"Excellent." He replied, manoeuvring her so he could sit in the chair as well, pulling her onto his lap and she curled up against him, "You would've loved it, Danni-Girl. All the birds have learnt to imitate the bells chiming, so every hour there was a beautiful chorus letting you know the time."

"That sounds nice." She agreed with a yawn, "Did you get what you wanted?" He'd gone to get a part for the TARDIS, she was sure of it. He did explain it to her, there was a lot of arm waving and long words that she didn't understand. Something to do with the psychic interface, help the TARDIS go where the Doctor wanted her to.

Of course, he hadn't told her the reason he needed to improve the interface was to try and lock onto Clara Oswin Oswald. His long-term plan was to find out exactly what had happened to make the same girl pop up in at least three places, because if she was in the Dalek Asylum, Victorian London and his future then it stood to reason she'd be somewhere else. Maybe then he could prove to Danni that she wasn't responsible for Clara's death.

"I did." He said, "I'm hoping we might be able to tap into your memories, maybe find out where exactly the Time Lord comes from."

"Do you still think I have different parents?" She asked him, hoping he'd changed his mind. They'd actually not discussed it much, considering it was such a big mystery in their lives. The Doctor hadn't cared at all what had happened to her, all that had mattered was she was alive and she wasn't going anywhere. Now that he'd opened himself back up to the universe and its splendour, he was keen on finding out the cause. He did think that it may be to do with her travelling without a capsule inside the Vortex for so many years, but now his main train of thought was it was something to do with her parents.

She didn't want it to be different people, she could accept her own parents hiding the Time Lordness from her, but to find out they'd hid an entire history from her was too much for her to think about.

"Potentially." He explained, "But I'm hoping we can tap into some really early memory, when you were a baby, where they wouldn't have been so careful talking about it around you."

"That's possible?" She asked, sounding intrigued and he nodded.

"Not for everyone." He told her before smirking, "The procedure is very delicate. Only fully qualified Time Travelling aliens can perform it." She rolled her eyes.

"Really?" She asked sceptically.

"Only the best." He confirmed.

"Perhaps Jack can help you then." She retorted, laughing when he looked offended.

"I think you like him more than me." The Doctor pouted and she shook her head, leaning closer and brushing her lips against his.

"Most definitely not." She promised, making the movement again. His hand shot to her hair, threading through it and clutching tight, stopping her moving away. Since Clara had broken the barrier between them, Danni had been much more likely to initiate or respond to any of his touches or kisses, something he could have thanked the young woman for, for the rest of his lives.

"Do you want to go see Jack?" He asked quietly, testing the waters, when he allowed her to back away. And there it was, he watched her close down, she shifted on his lap, pushing herself off.

"Maybe some other time." She dismissed, "You're right, I should head to bed."

"Danni…" He tried but she shook her head.

"It's not like he'd recognise me anyway, is it?" She pointed out, "I mean, he'd be expecting old me, and he won't believe that I've regenerated so it's probably for the best I stay away anyway."

"Danni, you can't just hide away!" He sighed, exasperated, "If I'm with you, Jack'll believe it's you. And you know he'll love it, he adores you. Quite rightly, in my opinion." He saw the smile she tried to hide and stood up, "He'll be overjoyed that you'll be around for as long as him now."

"We don't know that yet, though, do we?" She countered, the smile falling away, "Maybe we should wait until we are absolutely sure." He opened his mouth to protest, "Please, Theta. Not yet." He nodded slowly, seeing she was getting upset and shot her a soft smile.

"Not yet." He agreed and her shoulders sagged in relief, "Now, do you want me to tuck you in?" He asked and she blushed but nodded slowly, "Okay, you head off and I'll be there in just a moment." She walked over, placing another soft kiss against his lips.

"Are you coming to bed too?" She asked and he crinkled his nose up in almost disgust.

"And waste my time 'sleeping'?" He asked as if it was something awful and she giggled, "There's so many better ways I can spend my time than on sleep."

"Fine, fine." She waved her hand in defeat, "I'll sleep on my own. Don't be too long." He nodded and shooed her out of the door.

_~0~0~0~_

The Doctor had tucked her in then headed straight to the TARDIS console room. She was already half-asleep when he'd gotten there, he was sure it was something to do with her inactivity. She'd never slept this much before, now it was all she seemed to do. He did manage to get a little bit of kissing from her, which was great because it felt like he was making up for lost time. For her to be so close and yet so far away had been torture, that wasn't happening again.

He'd somehow managed to end up on a swing, thinking back on memories of Amy and Rory. He wasn't swinging very high, just backwards and forwards slowly. He'd linked himself up to the console, gave the TARDIS his memories of Clara and this was where she ended up taking him. Psychic interface must still not be configured right, he'd get onto that. After he'd finished swinging, of course.

He remembered seeing Danni swinging with the little girl outside the Ponds house. She'd been so carefree, swinging up incredibly too high. He'd had no idea what was going on behind that smile, but all those worries must have been there under the surface.

New regenerations were influenced by the experiences of the old ones. His Ninth self had regenerated into a pretty boy because of Rose, he still looked older than her because he'd always wanted her to know he was older than her, but he remembered thinking about how she'd deserved someone who wasn't so northern with big ears. Ten was born out of that, he couldn't really remember how much of him was thinking about Danni at that point. Probably more than he'd have admitted at the time, he'd been so angry so perhaps the southern accent had come from his need to get as far away from her northern self as possible.

This current body had come out a lot more affectionate and hyper than he was used to being, that had been all Danni. He looked like a baby, but he'd seemed almost her age, that can't have been a coincidence, but that probably had come from his need to just start again generally.

Danni's new regeneration spent more time scared than feeling safe. Her nightmares gave reason to that, jumping into adventures and into awful situations constantly had fried her emotions over the years, and then he'd turned on her, chucking her into the void outside the TARDIS, even if he hadn't meant to. Then she'd spent time in the Time War, been killed by Rassilon and she'd had to deal with the Master once again. It was a wonder, really, she wasn't a crying mess in the corner.

She was beautiful, absolutely stunning and during their few visits down to Victorian London he'd noticed she'd pulled in a few more glances than she used to. He'd always found her incredibly good-looking, thought, and the new body hadn't changed that at all.

But even that had come from the Master as well, he'd plagued her so completely that her physical appearance reflected her constant thoughts of him. He was sure her love of horror movies was just her trying to find something she could relate to. She hadn't been to the karaoke bar once.

He wasn't sure he could calm her down and convince her that everything was going to be okay. The Master was trapped in the Time War, he couldn't hurt her anymore and she was safe from him. But he couldn't even begin to do that until she admitted to herself that the way she saw the Master wasn't actually how she felt. He'd been jealous of the other Time Lord at one point, now he was just angry.

Clara had kept her calm, focused her on what they were doing and she'd been having as much fun as she used to. Until Clara had died, anyway. If he could find her, solve that puzzle and bring back her companion perhaps Clara could help her heal and move on in a way he failed to help her.

"Hello." He looked up from his hands, which were clasped in his lap, to see a very happy-looking little girl with pigtails sitting on the swing next to him.

"Hello." He greeted with a small smile of his own, still swinging backwards and forwards.

"Why are you sitting on the swing?" She asked curiously and he looked down at himself.

"Why shouldn't I?" He counted and she giggled.

"Because you're _old_!" He nodded, smiling at her innocent bluntness. Danni would've loved that.

"Yeah that's true." He agreed, frowning slightly, "That…that…that is very true."

They swung in silence for a moment, the Doctor looking straight ahead as the girl stared at him curiously, "My mum says I shouldn't talk to strange men."

"Ah your mum's right." The Doctor replied with a nod.

"Are you strange?" She asked and he laughed, nodding.

"Oh dear, I'm way past strange. I think I'm probably incredible!" He told her and she giggled, making him smile. There was nothing better in the universe than making a child giggle.

"Are you lonely?" She asked suddenly, out of nowhere and it surprised him slightly.

"Why would I be lonely?" He countered, confused.

"Because you're sad." She explained, looking slightly upset at that herself, "Have you lost something?"

"No." He told her, looking back down at his hands again, "My wife is sad though, she's sad and scared and that makes me sad sometimes, because I think she might feel lonely."

"When I lose something," The little girl explained, picking up her swinging slightly, "I go to a quiet place, and I close my eyes, and then I can remember where I put it!"

He nodded with a smile, "Good plan."

"I'm always losing things." She told him, "I lost my best pencil, my school bag, my gran, and my mojo."

"Your mojo?" He repeated with a laugh and she smiled, happy that she'd made the sad man laugh.

"I got it back though." She promised and he made sure to act suitably relieved, although in the back of his mind he made sure to keep a check on his. He didn't know you could just _lose_ your mojo.

"Hey, that's good."

"What did your wife lose?" She asked gently.

"Our friend." He replied, "We've both met her twice before and lost her both times and now I don't think we'll ever find her again."

"Have you been looking?" She asked.

He nodded, "Yeah, everywhere." He began clicking his heels together. He really had tried to find her, but with the whole of time and space to look through, it was very hard to find a place to start. That's why he was trying to improve the psychic interface, so he at least had something to go on.

"That's sad." She declared and he nodded, looking around the park, trying to take his mind off just how sad it was.

"It is a bit." He agreed before pointing at a woman with brown hair, chatting to the blonde haired woman who'd pulled his attention in the first place, "Hey, is that your mum?"

"Yeah, I better go and see if she's alright." The girl replied, as if she was always checking to make sure her mum was alright, like her mum was the child and she was the adult.

"Yeah, I think you better had." The Doctor replied, feeling himself beam again. The girl was downright adorable, actually. It was a long way off, but perhaps, one day…

"How are you gonna find her?" She asked curiously.

"Well," He drew out the word, because he couldn't explain his plan to such a young child, "the first two times I met her, I just sort of bumped into her so I thought, maybe, if I just wandered about a bit I might bump into her again. You know like…like destiny. Sort of."

The little girl pulled a face, "That's rubbish!" He laughed.

"I think it probably is." He agreed, "Hey maybe I could find a quiet room and have a good think about it instead." The girl nodded, coming to a stop.

"That would be better." She told him before jumping off the swing, "Goodbye!"

"Goodbye." He called after her, waving.

She paused half way to her mother, turning around, "Mister, I hope you find her again for your wife." He smiled softly.

"So do I." He replied and she ran off, her mum probably scolding her for talking to a strange man.

_~0~0~0~_

"Doctor?" Danni called timidly, stepping into the console room, looking around for her husband. She wasn't sure how long she'd been asleep for, but the moment she'd woken up she had needed to find him.

She'd had the dream again. One she used to have periodically before she'd regenerated and one that she never seemed to stop having now. She couldn't understand it, really. All she remembered was feeling like her world was crashing around her, being crushed and Koschei being there. She always felt so terrified when she woke up, but she didn't like to think it was because he was there.

She'd spent so long blaming herself, the idea that he had something to do with their affair just seemed foreign to her. She could've fought him off just fine, actually. The drumming had just turned her slightly sex-crazy, it had nothing to do with him. It could have been anyone.

"Danni?" The Doctor called before there was an almighty bang and she yelled in surprise, dashing down the two sets of stairs to find him underneath the console, hands flaying in front of him as he tried to bat the smoke away from him.

"What happened?" She asked, alarmed, as he lifted his oversized goggles, wondering if he could see where he'd gone wrong, "Are you hurt? Did it electrocute you?" She began brushing his suit down, trying to get the dust off it.

"No, I'm fine. I just connected the wrong cable." He promised her but she didn't stop brushing him down, her hands shaking. He grabbed one and her gaze shot up to his, she looked petrified, "What's wrong?" He asked and she swallowed, trying to stop her shaking.

"I… I had a bad dream." She told him, "And I didn't know where you were." He pulled her in for a hug, rocking her quietly, "I don't want him to hurt me." It was quiet, a little whisper of a voice that would have been drowned out by the TARDIS humming but he heard it.

"He won't." He promised, not taking it any further. Instead, he held her at arm's length, grinning from ear to ear, "You'll never guess where I was."

"Where?" She asked and he let her go to put his goggles back on.

"I was on a set of swings in Blackpool." He told her proudly and she shot him a confused look.

"You told me not to go on the swings because they were dangerous." She accused.

"The way you were swinging on them, they are." He countered, "I was going at a safe speed, not at all foolhardy."

"'Foolhardy'?" She repeated and he glanced over his shoulder at her as he pulled the two wires apart.

"What?" He asked and she shook her head, motioning him to continue, "I met this little girl, she seemed to be quite sensible when it came to swings as well. She could have taught you a few things."

"A little girl?" Danni asked and he was very pleased to hear that she sounded vaguely interested, "How little?" He shrugged, pulling another wire out of the mass tangled together in the middle. He soniced the end.

"I'm not sure, somewhere between 5 and 20." He offered and she giggled, "Pigtails. She lost her mojo once, but she found it again." Danni walked over, looking at what he was doing with her nose crinkled in confusion.

"Her mojo?"

"She got it back, though." The Doctor replied to reassure her, "Right, this should do it." He put two wires together, Danni turning away as it sparked but didn't explode. He let go, pulling off his goggles with a cheer, "Excellent! Come along, Danni-Girl!" He grabbed her hand and pulled her up to the console, where he picked up a padded crocodile clip. He turned to her, clipping it on her finger and the monitor above it began to change.

"What's she doing?" Danni asked as the symbols shifted and changed, landing on what seemed to be Gallifreyan, "What does it say?"

"No, you silly machine!" The Doctor exclaimed instead, smacking the side of the monitor like it was a television on the blink, "Do it properly or don't do it at all."

"What have I told you about hitting her?" Danni scolded, grabbing his hand to stop him doing it again, "What's wrong?"

"She was supposed to get a reading on your parents." He grumbled, "Instead she's given us a countdown."

"A countdown?" Danni looked at the screen again, trying to see anything counting down. It didn't even look like anything was changing, "A countdown to what?"

"To read your memories." The Doctor told her before sighing, "It's probably harder than I'm giving her credit for." The TARDIS console hummed and Danni giggled. He took hold of her hand, taking the clip off her finger before placing a kiss in the middle of her palm. He then began trailing them down her arm to the middle of her bicep where the edge of her sleeve sat. He caught her gaze and her lips were slightly parted as she stared, wide eyed. He smirked then placed the clip on his own fingers.

"I'll give it a test." He told her lowly and she nodded, still staring at him, "Should be able to lock onto our Crystal Moon easily." The monitor began to change, a sure sign that it was doing the same thing it had done for Danni.

Then the TARDIS flipped onto her side, sending them flying with a scream of surprise as she took off into an incredibly turbulent flight.

_~0~0~0~_

_I'm sorry you had to sit through that. I had a load of little ideas for this chapters, but they didn't come together very well._

_If you don't want to review, that's fine. But if you want to let me know you've made it to the end, I shall love you for forever XD xxx_


	8. The New Clara

Danni opened the door slowly, looking out into the dark, damp little room with a look of trepidation on her face. No one was there and she wouldn't have been able to see if it wasn't from the light of the TARDIS behind her.

This was the longest the Doctor had been, almost three days now. They'd crashed landed into the beginning of the 13th Century and the moment he'd stepped out of the TARDIS, he'd been accosted by monks. The only reason she was still there was because he'd slammed the door shut behind him, almost smacking her in the face and she'd been left the wait in the console room for him to return.

Four hours later and he had, grinning from ear to ear, bragging about how he'd found the perfect 'quiet place' and that he was going to fix everything. Apparently the little girl had told him the best place to have a think was to go to a 'quiet place' and think back on what you've lost. Which were his memories. He wanted to go over every single thing he could remember, trying to pinpoint anything that had been said or things he'd seen to try and figure out what had happened to her, while the TARDIS continued to slowly count down. They'd been there for two months now, and of course she had to stay in the TARDIS because the monks had a strict 'no girls allowed' policy.

She'd been very keen on this at first, but after spending so much time on her own, she was itching to leave, or to at least not be on her own anymore.

That didn't mean, though, that she was ready for what was currently happening. The phone on the front of the TARDIS was ringing, just calmly ringing to itself. The phone, that was no connected to any lines, that was there only as a dummy, was ringing.

The room was illuminated by a flickering light and a very confused, young monk appeared. He stared at her, torch out in front of him like it would protect him and she rolled her eyes.

"Go and tell the Doctor the phone's ringing, would you?" She asked him, her tone not hiding the annoyance she felt at the fact she couldn't go tell him herself.

"W-Woman aren't allowed on the sacred grounds." He stuttered out, still brandishing the torch and she felt her hands tensing in irritation.

"I'm not on the sacred grounds, I'm in the TARDIS." She pointed out slowly, "Go tell the Doctor the phone's ringing."

"The phone?" He repeated, confused and she nodded, pointing at the TARDIS.

"Yes, this thing here is called a telephone." She told him, talking like she was explaining it to a child, "It's ringing when it really shouldn't be and the Doctor needs to know about it." She was sure she used to be more patient about these things, but the gormless look on his face was really getting on her nerves. They were supposed to have been heading to their crystal moon where he'd proposed to her, and yet somehow she'd ended up stuck underground trying to explain modern technology to someone who was confused by her just because she was a woman.

"Do you mean the Mad Monk?" He asked her timidly.

"Yes, I do." she snapped, "But please, _please_, don't let him know you call him that. Last thing he needs is another nickname." The monk nodded, but didn't move until she made shooing motions with her hands, "Go on, then." He turned and dashed back up the stairs, letting her fall back into darkness.

She closed the door, leaning against it and closing her eyes, letting out an angry breath. The sooner they were out of there, the better. Turns out she wasn't much of a fan of the past, these days. Give her the future any day. At least they'd have the bloody internet.

_~0~0~0~_

The Monk told the Abbott exactly what was happening before he'd headed to the Mad Monk, which was the practice that had been repeated explained to them. The Mad Monk was not to be disturbed while in his sanctuary, he was doing important spiritual work and he needed solitude unless it was deemed necessary. His wife was always deemed necessary.

The room he had taken residence in had been a place to store some of their excess scriptures, except he was using it to paint. One painting was off his wife, smiling shyly, which seemed odd to see on her face, considering the few times the young monk had met her. Next to that was a picture of a brown-haired woman, with the words 'Run you clever boy. Take your Danni-Girl and remember' just underneath her. The young monk looked at her, wondering if the mysterious woman would have been nicer to him.

The Abbot cleared his throat to get the attention of the Mad Monk, who was sat at his table, deep in thought, "I'm sorry to intrude." The Mad Monk looked up, "Your wife requests your presence. The bells of Saint John are ringing."

The Mad Monk stood up, walking over to the Abbot before removing his hood and revealing his rather mad hair, looking at the Abbot with a stern look on his face.

"I'm going to need a horse!" He told the other man firmly, with no room to argue before he exited to the back chamber to prepare to leave again.

The moment the Doctor entered the back room, a smile broke out on his face and he did his own little jig on the spot. This was the first time Danni had requested him to come back from the monastery since they'd landed, which meant she'd not only stepped out of the TARDIS, but had spoken to someone else who hadn't been him. He'd heard the younger monk talk about his wife, stating how abrupt she'd been with him on the other couple of occasions they'd spoken, but this was her actively engaging in the world around her again.

'The Bells of Saint John are ringing' was a bit confusing, but whatever it was had to be holding her interest if it meant she'd called from him. He could only hope it kept her attention long enough for her not to notice how enticed she'd become.

_~0~0~0~_

The young monk led the Doctor down into the underground cavern where he'd parked the TARDIS; away from the prying eyes of any locals who may have come across it. The existence of the Doctor and his blue box was only entrusted with a few monks, those who were held in the highest regards and even then only a couple had been allowed to see where the Mad Monk had come from.

Yes, he knew about the nickname, and he loved it. It was why he was still wearing the robe.

He could hear the phone ringing as they headed down the staircase, and positively beamed when he saw Danni leaning in the doorframe, an irritated frown on her face.

"Well," she drawled, "You took your time. Did you get lost on the way to my husband?" The monk ducked his head and she rolled her eyes, amusing the Doctor slightly with her grumpiness. She was getting frustrated, which was a good sign, "It's been ringing for ages."

"Why didn't you answer it?" He countered, walking over and leaning on the door next to her, a flirty smirk on her face.

She shrugged, "Not my phone." She turned to head back into the TARDIS, but he grabbed her arm, pulling her back against him. The young monk turned away, embarrassed by the show of affection as the Doctor opened the hatch in the door, pulling out the handset and placing it against his ear. He placed a kiss on the small bit of her neck he could reach, causing her to squirm in his arms.

"Hello?" He asked before repeating the action, shushing Danni teasingly when she squeaked.

"_Ah, hello. I can't find the internet._" A female voice asked on the other side and the Doctor frowned, his other hand coming to a stop on Danni's hip.

"I'm sorry?" He asked.

"_It's gone, the internet. Can't find it anywhere. Where is it?_" The woman replied.

"The internet?" He repeated.

"The Internet?" Danni asked and he nodded, pointing to the phone as if it made all the difference.

"It's 1207." The Doctor protested.

"_I've got half past 3:00._" The woman replied, sounding slightly worried, "_Am I phoning a different time zone?"_

"Yeah, you really sort of are." The Doctor agreed, looking around the dank, cold cavern they were stood in.

"_Will it show up on the bill?_"

"Oh, I dread to think." The Doctor muttered to himself before shaking his head, "Listen, where did you get this number?"

"_Woman in the shop wrote it down._" The woman explained, "_It's the helpline, isn't it? She said it was the best helpline out there. In the universe, she said._"

"What woman? Who was she?"

"_I dunno, the woman in the shop. So why isn't there internet? Shouldn't it just sort of... be there?_"

"Look, listen, I'm not actually... this isn't... You have clicked on the Wi-Fi button, haven't you?" Danni rolled her eyes as he actually started to help the woman on the other end of the phone. Never mind the fact she managed to ring a phone that wasn't actually a phone, the Doctor had to start to give her advice on how to fix her computer?

Danni reached up, about to rip the handset from his grasp and tell the other person to bugger off when his eyes went wide and he let her go.

"What did you say?" He asked loudly, startling Danni slightly as he stepped away from her. He turned and put the handset down, throwing the little hatch door shut and grabbed her hand.

"TARDIS, now." He told her, almost breathlessly which she didn't really like. The woman on the other side of the phone had obviously said or done something the completely pull his attention away from the reason that they'd been stuck there for the last two months, something Danni had been trying to get him to do from the moment they'd landed.

They didn't even land on their crystal moon, instead they were outside some suburban house and the Doctor pretty much dragged her out of the TARDIS, despite her protests, and up to the front door.

She yanked her arm away, her eyes narrowing as she felt herself becoming even more annoyed at him by the moment, "What the hell are you doing?" She hissed, "Where are we?" He just pulled her up for a kiss, infuriating her further before patting her on both cheeks and leaving her stunned.

Suddenly he started ringing the doorbell incessantly, banging on the glass panes in the front door along with it.

"Stop it!" She cried, "Doctor, what's going on?"

"Oh, just you wait." He replied, sounding completely ecstatic, "Wait and see, you'll be so happy. I did it, I can prove everything is going to be okay." He looked down at her, hands pausing their movements for a moment, "told you I would, didn't I?"

"Told me what?" She asked, hearing a female voice calling from inside the house. He didn't answer, just continued to bang impatiently on the door, "Stop ignoring me, you- !" The door opened and whatever insult was on her lips died at the sight of the woman who was stood there, looking at the two, obviously confused.

"Hello?" Clara Oswald asked, looking the two peculiar people up and down. The woman had short blonde hair, a pair of skinny black jeans on and a white shirt, which wasn't odd in itself. It was mainly the look on her face; stunned but also like she was about to cry.

The man was wearing some sort of all-over brown robe, but he looked infinitely happier to see her stood there.

"Clara?" The woman breathed, so quiet that Clara could barely hear her at all.

"Hello?" Clara asked again in reply.

"Clara Oswin Oswald?" The man exclaimed, motioning to her with both hands and Clara shook her head.

"Just Clara Oswald." She clarified, "What was that middle one?"

"Do you remember us?" He asked excitedly, looking at her expectantly. She looked him over again before shaking her head.

"No." She told him, "Should I? Who are you?" The man took a step towards her, not in an intimidating way, but almost like if he moved slightly closer her memory would jog and she'd remember the two people at her front door. Well, not her front door, but where she was currently living.

"The Doctor." He replied, motioning to the woman, "Danni." Clara shook her head slowly, neither of them ringing any bells. And she'd remember the man in the robe, "No? Not even Danni?" Strange, how could anyone forget Danni? He leant in, looking at himself in the mirror on the wall. He hadn't changed recently, had he? His hair was still a bit flat, he supposed. It was those bloody robes, the moment the hood went up, his hair went down. And using any of his normal product had been completely out of the question, _apparently._

Something occurred to Clara, "Doctor who?"

"No, just the Doctor." The Doctor looked back into the mirror, smiling to himself as he actually heard what she'd asked. He did like that question, "Actually, sorry, could you just ask me that again?"

"Could I what?" Clara asked, perplexed.

"Could you just ask me that question again?"

"Doctor who?" She repeated the question slowly, looking at the woman for confirmation, but she was now just staring at the Doctor in disbelief. Oh good, Clara had thought she'd missed something, but no, that was just him apparently.

"OK, just once more." He commanded, still grinning like an idiot.

"Doctor who?"

"Oh, yeah." He stepped out, turning to the blonde woman, "Oh! D'you know, I never realised how much I enjoy hearing that said out loud." He turned back to Clara as the blonde woman shook her head slowly, "Thank you."

"OK." She shut the door and the Doctor jumped, stepping forward to bang on the door again when Danni grabbed him, pulling him down so they were eye-to-eye. He was surprised by the anger burning there.

"We need to talk." She snarled, pulling him away from the door and towards the parked TARDIS.

"I thought we might." He muttered before holding his hands up in surrender, "but, in my defence…" She spun, chucking her arms out to the side.

"_This_ is what you've been doing?!" She shouted, "I've been stuck underground while you've been waltzing around, trying to _replace_ Clara!"

"I'm not trying to replace anyone." He reassured her, "I think," he started, lowering his voice when he saw her hands clench, "she's the original point. We can work out what happened, what went wrong."

"What?" She scoffed, "Work out why two versions of the same girl died around us? How? By bringing a third in?" She stepped closer, looking like she was about to slap him, raising her arm before thinking better of it, "Had you not thought for one second that maybe it's not a good thing? That the fact that there's another woman jumping around your timeline has already happened twice and neither times have ended well for you?"

"You are _not_ a danger to me." He promised, taking her hands in his and placing a kiss on her palm, "I know you're scared, but we might be able to stop it happening again, or at all." Danni shook her head.

"Do what you like." She told him, "I am having no part of this, Spaceman." She pointed to the house, "That girl is bad news. Whatever is happening here cannot stem from anything good." She stared up at the house again before sighing sadly, "But when have you ever listened to me?"

"But she's your companion." The Doctor pointed out, hurt that nothing was happening the way he'd planned it.

"No, she's not." Danni snapped, "My companion was Clara Oswin Oswald. She saved the world from snow and she _died._ I don't know who that is, but she's not _my_ Clara." She pinched the bridge of her nose, squeezing her eyes shut as she tried desperately hard to calm down. She opened them again to see him staring at her, his eyes so sad and she had done that yet again. She wanted to comfort him, instead she bristled against it.

"Do what you like, Spaceman." She told him before turning to leave him stood outside. She leant against the doorway, sliding down onto the floor as she listened to see if he followed her, but she couldn't hear a thing.

It wasn't like she didn't want it to be Clara. Part of her was hoping beyond all hope that it the girl behind the suburban door was Clara, that perhaps that being here they could save her from the fate waiting for her in Victorian London. She'd been feisty, and inquisitive and pretty both times she'd met her, and by being there when she shouldn't have, Danni had killed her. That wonderful girl hadn't stood a chance.

Now she'd turned up again, seemingly ignorant to who they both were and Danni wasn't sure if that was good or not. If she was in the future compared to her Clara, then why had she also been her Clara, and Oswin as well? The same girl dying twice in different parts of the universe, with only the actual girl and the Doctor linking them together in any way. Anything that closely linked to the Doctor never turned out well, especially for him. What happened to them being together and alone?

She leant her forehead on her knees, squeezing her eyes closed as she hugged her knees.

_~0~0~0~_

The Doctor entered the TARDIS slowly, looking around to see if he could see Danni. He'd tried again to talk to Clara, perhaps if she showed Danni she was normal and nice, she'd believe it too. It wasn't like he'd not thought of all the things she was worried about, without being too big headed he was extremely clever and so a million different outcomes had flown through his gigantic mind and he still came to the same conclusion; that this was worth investigating. Never mind the fact that he had to prove to Danni that what had happened _wasn't_ her fault, but, really, a girl scattered across time and space, dying at least twice from what he knew and yet still existing? How could he not be drawn to a mystery like that?

He found Danni leaning against the base of the console, glasses sliding off her nose slightly as she held a book in one hand, dozing slightly. He'd never been able to resist a mystery, that's what had drawn him to his wife. He knelt down in front of her, running his fingers gently through her blonde hair. She actually seemed to be having a trouble less sleep, which was nice but she couldn't sleep there.

"Danni." He whispered gently, stroking her face to try and wake her up.

"_No._" Her eyes shot open and she blinked back into the waking world, pushing her glasses back up, "Theta?" He nodded.

"You'll get a crick in your back." He scolded lightly, helping her stand up.

"I'm sorry." She told him, "I didn't mean to get angry, I'm just worried that she's going to get you hurt." He nodded, placing a kiss on her forehead.

"I know." He promised, "I can't get her to talk to me. I'm not sure why, I'm quite charming." She giggled.

"It might be the monk get-up." She broke to him in a teasing tone. He looked down at his robes, pulling at them sadly. They were good while they lasted.

"You might be right." He agreed, "They're not very current, are they? I can fix that. I can be quite stylish when I put my mind to it."

"Really?" She asked, "Then why the bow tie?" He gasped in fake offense, hand on his chest where his hearts were.

"Bow ties are cool." He insisted before looking down at his outfit sadly, "Monks aren't cool, are they?" She shook her head.

"Sorry sweetie." He reached out, grabbing her hand and pulling her down to the underside of the console. He stopped, pulling off most of the outfit and chucking it to the side before opening one of the hatches on the base. Danni moved to his side to avoid the discarded pieces of clothing and other items he was chucking behind him, looking for the perfect piece.

"Ah-ha!" He held his fez aloft happily before placing it on his head. Danni immediately reacted by taking it off him and chucking it with the rest of the clothing behind them. It didn't stop his frantic search, but he did pout until he found two jackets. He pulled them out, presenting them to her. One was his classic tweed, one he'd rocked since he'd regenerated and pulled off quite nicely if you asked Danni. However, she recognised the other one. It was the deep purple-ly grey one she'd seen on him the first time she'd met Clara, one he wore with an all-purple suit and one she'd adored the look of even before she regenerated.

She shrugged, not really replying to his expectant look and he dropped his old jacket, like he'd decided that he wanted to new one. She beamed, nodding enthusiastically, secretly glad he'd chosen that one and jumped up, turning and searching through the clothes he'd already discarded, picking out a pair of trousers, a shirt and bracers.

She watched with a small smirk on his face as he completely stripped and got dressed, she was only part-human after all and god he was bloody gorgeous. He smirked at her as he pulled on his trousers, knowing she was watching and walked over, pulling her against him and dipping his head for a quick kiss that turned into a longer one.

He could tell something was missing as he finished buttoning up the shirt, his throat felt slightly bare so he dipped into the compartment one last time, pulling out a wooden box. He opened it up to show Danni the bowtie stored inside, one of his favourites and she nodded in approval.

"Bow ties are cool." He told her factually and she sighed in defeat.

"Yes, they are." She agreed and he slipped it on.

_~0~0~0~_

"Clara?" The Doctor knocked on the front door, even though it was quite obvious from their earlier encounter that she wasn't going to answer him there, "Clara?"

"_Hello?"_ Her voice came from the intercom and he dived around to the little speaker, pulling Danni with him.

"See? Look, it's me!" He slapped his face a couple of times, "De-monked." He spun on the spot and Danni couldn't help the little roll of her eyes at his childish behaviour, "Sensible clothes, and I've brought Danni back!" He pulled his wife against him, "So, because I have this beautiful woman with me, can we come in now?" He rubbed his hands together eagerly.

"_I don't understand_." Clara replied unsurely.

He pointed to the door with a frown, "Could you just open the door?"

"_I don't know..."_ She started.

"Of course you can!" He told her impatiently.

"…_where I am."_ Her voice was tinged with fear and he backed away from the intercom slightly. Something was wrong.

"_I don't know where I am. Where am I? Please tell me, where I am! I don't know where I am."_ Clara cried, terrified and he turned to the door to see Danni slam into it, breaking the lock with the force of her shoulder on the wood.

"Clara!" She cried, having been filled with a panic-fuelled terror the moment Clara had sounded scared. The girl was on the floor past out and she fell to her knees next to her, feeling for a pulse as the Doctor pulled his screwdriver out, "No, not again!"

The Doctor quickly scanned her, "She's not dead." He promised, as Danni leant down to hear her breathing.

"Clara, can you hear me?" Danni asked.

"_I don't know where I am! I don't understand. I don't know where I am! I don't know where I am!_" Clara's voice continued to exclaim, but it was clearly obvious it wasn't coming from her body. They both looked up slowly to see what looked like the body of a small child stood half-way up the stairs, its face replaced by a dish which showed a projection of Clara, the woman looking around, terrified.

Danni grabbed onto the Doctor's arm, "What the hell is that?!" He placed a kiss on her hair, standing up slowly as Clara continued to beg for information. He set off the screwdriver, pointing it at the thing on the stairs. It shimmered, the image of the young child disappearing and showing the frame of a robot.

"A walking base station. A walking Wi-Fi base station, hoovering up data. Hoovering up people!" He turned to Danni, "Stay with Clara." He told her and she nodded, stroking the woman's hair as he dashed upstairs.

"I'm sorry, Clara." Danni whispered, "You'll be okay, I promise." The Doctor was quick, coming back down with a small, blue laptop and he knelt by Danni, typing wildly on the keyboard, "Is she going to be okay?"

"Someone's trying to upload her onto the Wi-Fi." He told her, "If I can stop it…" He growled slightly as whatever he was fighting against began to fight back, trying to stop his attempts at cancelling the upload, "Oh, no, you don't. Oh, no, you don't."

The Doctor dropped the laptop suddenly, reaching forward to see if he could feel any pulse on Clara's neck, only to pull away when a blue beam of light shot from the dish on the robot's head. It landed on Clara's face, the robot sparking slightly just before Clara took in a deep breath, rolling over as she coughed at the burning sensation in her lungs.

"Woah, it's okay." Danni cried, rubbing her back gently, before rolling her over, "You're okay, Clara. I've got you." Her eyelids flickered slightly, like she was about to wake up, but she slept on, "You're safe now." She looked up at the Doctor, "What the hell was that?" She asked.

"I don't know." He muttered, "But I have an idea." He frowned slightly, "Well, not so much an idea as an inkling. Or, at least, the start of an inkling." Danni stared back with a confused look, eyebrows furrowed and he smiled gently, brushing over it, "Let's get this one to bed, then I'll start on the inkling."

_~0~0~0~_

Clara woke slowly, incredibly too comfortable to be leaving anywhere but the comfort of her sleep. The sound of someone heading down the stairs briefly hit her consciousness, but she dismissed it as she tried to focus on the plate on her bedside table. There where biscuits sat on it, which was nice. And some flowers, with a glass of water waiting for her. What had she done to deserve this?

What _had_ she done to deserve this? She sat up, hand hovering on the top of her head. Why was she in bed? Why did it feel like she'd had such a strange dream, but yet she couldn't grasp at it? She looked down at the biscuits again. Chocolate digestives? Her favourite.

_~0~0~0~_

"She's going to be disappointed!" The Doctor called into the open TARDIS door, typing on the laptop balanced on his knee, the robot propped up on a work bench, "We should have left Jammy Dodgers!" Danni stuck her head out, now wearing her red pyjamas but she still had her glasses on.

"I told you," She replied, the sigh in her voice, "When I spent the afternoon with her, after you'd had your wicked way with me, we spent a lot of time watching the Simpsons and eating chocolate biscuits. If they're supposed to be the same girl, she'll like them more." He stood up, putting the laptop on his chair and pulled her up against him.

"I don't remember you saying that." He said with a purr, "Tell me about the 'wicked way' part again. Was I still as handsome and as magnificent as I am now?"

"I'm not sure." She retorted, "I think you might have slowed down with age." He pretended to be outraged, only able to pull it off for a few moments before dipping his head to kiss her, to give her something to compare the memory to.

"Hello?" They both turned to see Clara leaning out of the upstairs window, looking slightly amused at their display. Danni immediately pushed away from him, blushing deeply while the Doctor just looked proud at the position they'd been caught in.

"Hello." He replied with a small wave, "Are you all right?"

"I'm in bed." Was her reply.

"Yes."

"Don't remember going." She explained, sounding very confused and looking slightly suspicious at the pair.

"No." He agreed, "Danni did leave a note, did you get it?" She looked behind her, spotting a folded up piece of paper under the plate of biscuits. She hadn't seen that before, it would have been more helpful if it had been more visible.

"What did I miss?" She asked, turning back to look at the pair

"Oh, quite a lot, actually." The Doctor replied, reaching into his pocket to pull out a small notebook, "Angie called, she's going to stay over at Nina's. Apparently that's all completely fine and you shouldn't worry like you always do, for God's sake, get ..." Danni reached up to put a finger on his lips, stopping him before he went into full-on ramble mode.

"Nothing important, sweetie." She called up, "Try and get some rest, you'll be fine." She placed a kiss on the Doctor's cheek, which he turned into a quick peck on the lips, "'Night." She hopped back into the TARDIS, leaving the Doctor to watch after her.

"Is she your girlfriend?" Clara asked and he smiled to himself, shaking his head.

"Wife." He corrected before a memory occurred to him, a distinct one from her Victorian alter ego. His face went stern and he turned around, pointing up to her like a teacher who might not have had the authority he once had, "While we're talking about that, there's strictly no kissing, is that understood?" Clara nodded, amused by how serious he seemed, "Only I can kiss her, keep your girly lips away from hers, is that understood?"

"Completely." She agreed with a laugh before going sombre, "What happened to me?" He stepped closer, looking up at her window.

"Don't you remember?"

"I was scared." She recalled, trying to think back on the afternoon, "Really scared. I didn't know where I was."

"Do you know now?" He asked.

"Yes." She replied instantly and he smiled.

"Well, then, you should go to sleep," He commanded gently, sounding a bit like a father and reinforcing the whole 'teacher' vibe she'd been getting from him since leaning out of the window, "because you're safe now, I promise." He bounced almost nervously on the spot, "Goodnight, Clara." With that, he turned on his heels and headed back to the blue box she'd noticed was still parked outside the house. He leant into its doorway, obviously checking on his wife before taking a seat in the chair, shifting it so he could see the window and the doorway better. Clara watched him before closing the door, pausing to try and work out how she felt about a strange man, with a blue box and a wife, sitting outside her house all night. She felt safer, strangely, but also just even more worried because it implied something might happen. She turned back and opened the window again, hanging out like she had been.

"Are you guarding us?" She asked. The Doctor looked up from the robot he'd decided to examine, nodding slowly to himself.

"Well, yes. Yes, I am." He decided.

"Are you seriously going to sit down there all night?"

"Yes. I promise. I won't budge from this spot." He chucked something she didn't recognise into the air, catching it with the same hand as he leant back in his chair, crossing one leg over the other.

"Well, then. I'll have to come to you." She grinned at his surprised look, pulling the window closed again before he could argue. She practically skipped downstairs, feeling excited for the first time in quite a while.

_~0~0~0~_

The Doctor took one of the three cups of tea of Clara, placing it down on the work bench next to the robot before taking another. She'd managed to get outside with three mugs of tea and a chair for herself, which was quite impressive if she did say so herself.

"I didn't know if your wife wanted one as well." She explained, "Should I take it into your strange little box for her?"

"No!" He cried, startling her slightly with his alarm. He grimaced, realising his mistake, "She'll love one, but I'll take it in for her." He raised the mug, "Probably best for you to stay out here for the moment."

"Why?" Clara asked with a nervous laugh, "Doesn't she like me?" He shook his head.

"Oh, it's definitely not that." He said, looking wistful for a moment, "She's just... She lost her friend, I don't want her..." He shook his head, smiling again, "I won't be a moment." He headed into the TARDIS, taking care to close the door behind him before heading to the console. He balanced the cup of tea on surface before pulling the monitor to him. There she was, his Danni-Girl, curled up watching the Simpsons.

"Clara thought you might like a cup of tea." He called, knowing she could hear him by the way she looked up at the ceiling, "She thought you might like one. We'll be outside, in case you need us." He paused, feeling slightly awkward talking to himself, which was rather unusual as he never stopped talking, even when alone, "Love you, Danni-Girl." With that, he left her alone, heading back outside to talk to Clara.

_~0~0~0~_

It came to him like most of his ideas, very slowly and then suddenly he knew exactly what was going on. It was like it would slowly cook inside his brain then '_ping_', the microwave was finished. He dashed to the side of the TARDIS, looking across the road at the man who was seemingly watching them. He'd saved Clara for a while, but he should have known that whoever was behind this wouldn't listen to his little warning.

"You and me, inside that box, now." He called over his shoulder, keeping a close eye on the man, motioning for her to do as he said.

"I'm sorry?" She asked, surprised and he dashed over to her. She jumped out of her chair, startled by his suddenly frantic demeanour but he just moved her vacant seat and headed to the door.

"Just get inside." He snapped, ready to push the door open.

"Both of us?" She asked, still sceptical, "And your wife? I saw her go in there." Confused for a moment, he turned and wondered why she thought that there was no room inside after seeing just how big the console room was. Then he remembered that _this_ Clara hadn't seen the inside of the TARDIS at all.

"Trust me, you'll understand once we're in there." He brushed off.

"I bet I will!" She retorted, now completely convinced that something completely... well, completely _not_ something she was into was going on.

"Clara, please!" He exclaimed, having picked up her tone and felt completely offended on both his and Danni's behalf.

"What is that box, anyway?" She demanded, "Why do you have a box?"

"Clara!" He walked over, pointing at her as if that would convince her to follow him. She'd been stubborn in Victorian London as well, must be a common trait throughout whatever these multiple Clara's were.

"Is it like a snogging booth?" She pressed and he glanced back at it, shrugging slightly.

"I suppose so." He admitted before turning back to her, looking alarmed, "Not for you, though. Never for you." He pointed at her again, this time more aggressively, "She's my wife; you keep your tiny hands off her."

"Tiny hands?!" She exclaimed, now the one offended.

"Yes, tiny hands and brown hair..." He trailed off, noticing how all the houses in the street were starting to light up, all the windows illuminating much too bright to be just the normal lighting, "Clara, look around you!"

"What's going on?" She asked, her anger vanishing as she began to feel that ominous sinking feeling that appeared just before something terrible happened, "What's happening? Is the Wi-Fi switching on the lights?"

The Doctor ran his hand through his hair, "No. The people are switching on the lights. The Wi-Fi is switching on the people." The man who he's spotted before began to turn his head, slowly going past the point a human could manage to reveal the dish that had sucked Clara in earlier that day.

"What is that thing?" She asked, amazed and disturbed in equal measure.

"A walking base station, you saw one earlier." He replied

"_I_ saw a little girl." She protested.

"Must have taken an image from your subconscious, thrown it back at you." Suddenly he smacked his forehead with both hands, growling in frustration at himself, "Active camouflage!" He looked around, down the street. He couldn't see anymore, but that didn't mean they weren't there, "They could be everywhere!" He whispered, horrified. He looked at the door to the TARDIS, where Danni was. She was safe in there, he would have seen anyone trying to get to her and the TARDIS had stronger shields than the Wi-Fi could pass through.

"Doctor!" Clara called as he stepped towards the TARDIS. He had to check she was alright, though. She couldn't regenerate again, and he wasn't even sure she would if she was 'uploaded', "Doctor!"

"What?" He snapped, now completely terrified that something had happened to Danni while he'd been trying to look after Clara at the same time. Two people was too many, it took away his focus.

Clara grabbed his arm, pulling him over to where she was standing and pointed out behind the house she was stopping in, where the taller buildings of London were visible and where the lights were slowly going off, bathing the city in darkness, "What's going on?" She asked, a strange rumbling filling the air, "All our lights on, everyone else's off. Why?"

"Some planes have Wi-Fi." He replied, seemingly out of the blue and she looked up at him, again wondering why she was talking to this strange man.

"I'm sorry?"

"We must be one hell of a target right now." He told her, looking slightly panicked as she began to really listen to the rumbling. They both spotted it at the same time, the lights of what was definitely a plane coming closer to them, getting larger as they did so. The Doctor's hand shot out, taking hers and practically dragged her to the blue box, "You, me, box, now!"

Danni looked up in surprise as the TARDIS door opened and the Doctor and Clara ran in like they were running for their lives. The Doctor immediately dropped Clara's hand and rushed over to his wife, cupping her face in both of his hands. She'd only just come to the console room, deciding that the cup of tea was actually quite a good idea and she'd pulled the monitor around the go onto YouTube for a while.

"Are you okay?" He asked frantically, tilting her head up so he could do that thing where he checked her eyes, but would never really tell her what he was checking for. She suspected it was just to make it look like he knew how to be an actual Doctor.

"Of course I am." She responded and he kissed her quickly, obviously not the way he wanted to by the pained look on his face.

"Plane." He told her and she blinked in confusion, "Heading this way." He clicked his fingers, pointing behind Clara, "Yes, it's a spaceship. Yes, it's bigger on the inside. No, I don't have time to talk about it." He rattled off before letting Danni go to actually move them away from the street where they were parked.

"But... but... but... it's..." Clara stuttered out, rushing around, looking under the outer ring of controls as if trying to find out how exactly they were pulling it off. She'd thought it was strange that Danni had headed inside it, so at least that made sense, but nothing else did.

Danni sighed to herself, seeing that the Doctor wasn't going to help his new friend acclimatise to her new surroundings so she walked over, taking the cup out of Clara's hands. Clara stared at her, absolutely stunned as Danni smiled softly at her.

"Firstly, she's a 'she', not an 'it'." Danni explained, "She's called the TARDIS, she's supposed to be bigger on the inside." Clara shook her head slightly, barely moving it but showing she really wasn't comprehending it.

"Bigger. On the inside. Actually bigger." She muttered and Danni nodded, moving her over to the railings and placing both of her hands on it.

"He also likes to pretend he can't fly her." She whispered, "Hold tight." Clara's hands tightened as the console sparked, they jolted and the Doctor rushed over, taking hold of Danni's hand to drag her towards the door.

"Right, come on!" He cried.

"Are we going back out there?" Clara cried, following the two even as Danni protested.

"I'm not going out there!" She exclaimed angrily.

"We've moved." He told Clara, ignoring Danni's protests which annoyed her further, "It's a spaceship, we flew away."

"Away from the plane?" Clara asked hopefully and he shot her a sheepish look.

"Not exactly!" He opened the door and the moment each of them stepped foot into the plane he's parked them on, they began to fall about as the plan plummeted towards the ground

"How did we get here?" Clara exclaimed, falling against the galley wall as the turbulence shook her off her feet.

"She's a ship, I told you, it's all very science-y!" The Doctor dismissed, tightening his grip on Danni's hand. They'd not really tested out her ability to stand up straight during such terrible turbulence, after all he flew the TARDIS expertly, but her old body hadn't exactly had perfect balance. On more than one occasion he'd seen her appear in front of him and tumble to the ground, tripping over her own feet, or even just the air generally. He barely paid attention to the people slumped over in the chairs, he wasn't taking any chances.

"Are we crashing? Again?" Danni exclaimed, "Are these people dead? Are we on a plane full of dead people?"

"Asleep people, switched off by the Wi-Fi." He replied, looking over his shoulder to see her perplexed look, "The Wi-Fi gave Clara computer skills, now it's crashing into her neighbourhood to get them back." He pulled his screwdriver out, pointing it at the cockpit.

"Of course it is." Danni grumbled, looking back at Clara, "Has he asked if you're okay?"

"I'm sorry," The Doctor snapped, interrupting Clara before she'd even had a chance to reply, "I've been busy trying to figure out how to stop a plane crashing. I've not had time for pleasantries." He pulled her into the cockpit, falling in between the unconscious pilot and co-pilot.

"You dragged her onto the TARDIS, you know the rules!" Danni cried, "What do we do?"

"Well, the plan is to stop the plane crashing." He told her, looking at all the buttons and switches. Why was there never a 'don't crash' button? A big, red button?

"What is going on? Is this real? Please tell me what is happening!" Clara cried, almost hysterical in her panic.

"I'm the Doctor. I'm an alien from outer space. I'm 1,000 years old. I've got two hearts and this is my Danni-Girl." He looked over her shoulder, "And I can't fly a plane, can you?" Both Danni and Clara shook their heads.

"No!" Clara exclaimed.

"Oooh! Fine, let's do it together." He grabbed the two main controls and pulled them towards him, the three of them screaming as he struggled to pull them back into flight. Danni wrapped her arms around his waist, burying her face into his back and felt him straighten, obviously getting some strength from her taking comfort in him.

The Doctor laughed happily as the plane levelled off, "Do you think a victory roll would be too show-off-y?" He asked Danni who nodded into his back.

"A little, yeah." She panted, "Jesus, Spaceman." There was a groan from his side as he turned to look down at Danni, placing a kiss on the top of her head before pulling her in for a tight hug out of sheer relief that they were all okay. He hadn't actually thought it was going to work, but it had. He should have more faith in himself, after all he was 1,000 years old and still kicking.

"_You're actually 1,200._" Danni whispered teasingly as she squeezed him tightly, her hearts slowly returning to a normal rhythm, "_But I won't tell her._"

"What the hell's going on?" The pilot demanded, coming around to see his co-pilot unconscious and three people in his cockpit. The Doctor let go of Danni with one arm, pointing his screwdriver at the ceiling and quickly setting it off.

"Well, I'm blocking your Wi-Fi, so you're waking up for a start." He told the man, "Tell you what," He patted the man on his arm before gently nudging Danni towards the door, "do you want to drive?" The pair headed out the door, leaving Clara to stare, completely stunned, out of the front window at the sky in front of them. Danni stuck her head back in, holding her hand out to Clara.

"Coming, sweetie?" She asked. Clara looked at the hand before taking it, clinging to it like a lifeline and Danni gently lead her out.

_~0~0~0~_

_Hello, everyone! Sorry for not updating last week, Christmas really got the better of me this year and I was not prepared at all for it! But I'm here with a longer chapter, and also the news of a little Christmas Fic for Danni! I posted the first chapter on Christmas Day and the next one is going to be on New Years Day. It's called 'The Time Child: Home For Christmas' and it's on my profile, so if you've not seen it, go read it. It's quite different to what I've written so far, but in a good way XD_

_Anyway, as always, thanks for the wonderful reviews and ever flowing favourites/follows. They always make me so happy, so thank you!_

_Oh, because I've had a couple questions about it, the little girl is from the prequel to The Bells of Saint John, and if you don't have it on DVD/Blu Ray/whatever, it's up on YouTube and bloody adorable! Go watch it!_

_As for an update schedule, it's every Monday. When on Monday, I can't say, but it'll always be before I go to bed. Despite not updating last week, I don't think I've done too bad!_

_The chapter where Danni saw the Doctor and River will be solved, but not yet. Long term plans and all that XD_

_Do I have anything else to add? I don't think so, but drop me a line either here or on Tumblr for a more rapid response! Love you all, drop a review if you liked it!_


	9. The WiFi

Clara had stormed into the TARDIS first, walking over to when Danni had put her cup of tea and picking it up, not stopping until she'd gulped the lukewarm liquid down, not taking a breath until she'd slammed it back onto the TARDIS console.

In fairness, she felt she had the right to be completely freaked out by what had happened. This strange man in a monks outfit had appeared at her door, with a wife, only to decide to change up into some better clothes and stand guard outside her house. Next thing she knows he's dragged her into a completely impossible box and then they're on a plane! Not just a plane, a crashing plane and she and his wife have to watch while he attempts to stop it killing them all!

This was not a typical day for her. Never mind the rush of adrenaline she got from the near-death experience, she deserved to know what the hell he was thinking!

"OK." She declared, turning to the pair, looking up at the Doctor firmly, "When are you going to explain what the hell is going on?" He stared at her for a moment before grinning.

"Breakfast." He replied, throwing a switch on the console. Clara yelped in surprise as the TARDIS lurched, the Doctor keeping a firm grip on Danni until it stopped and he rushed to the door. Clara dashed around the other side, trying to keep up.

"What? I ain't waiting till breakfast." She exclaimed.

"It's a time machine." He pointed out with a gesture of his hands, "You never have to wait for breakfast." With that he opened the door and headed out into the sunlight. Clara hesitated before turning to Danni, who had pulled the monitor to her.

"What did he mean?" She asked.

"He meant that _she_ is a time machine." Danni retorted, sounding slightly annoyed, "If he calls her an 'it' one more time we're going to have a serious talk. It's demeaning." Clara could hear the Doctor thanking someone outside and the faint sound of people clapping, "Are you not going to follow him?" Danni asked as the screen came to life and showed the Doctor bowing to the small crowd that had gathered outside. Clara glanced out the door. It couldn't really be morning out there, could it?

"Are you?" She asked Danni.

"Nah." Danni dismissed, "I'm not a fan of breakfast. It's lunch or nothing for me." Clara hesitated for a moment longer before following the Doctor, amazed because it actually _was_ morning, and people were actually giving him money, putting into a fez she knew for a fact he hadn't been wearing when he'd left the giant box.

They'd actually moved from her front garden, to a plane and then to, what appeared, to be the side of the Thames. And it was morning, it was actually bright blue skies and people were giving him money like it was some sort of act.

"Ah." He shoved the fez at Clara, noticing instantly Danni hadn't followed either of them, "Keep collecting, we need enough for breakfast. Won't be a moment." Leaving her to fund their food, he rushed past all the praising people and back into the TARDIS, quickly shutting the door behind him.

"Hey!" He called over to Danni happily, "You can't hide in here all day. We'll get pancakes!" He skipped down to her side, "I know a lovely little place. I say little, I mean it's on top of a building that looks across the city, but it's still lovely."

"I'm sure it is." She agreed as he pulled her into his arms, smiling in that way he always did before he dipped her head to kiss her, "But someone has to stay and look after the TARDIS."

"You're not coming?" He asked quietly, sounding quite sad at the idea, "They'll have pancakes!"

"I don't really fancy pancakes." She broke to him with a soft smile, "Go, have fun with Clara. I'll be here when you get back." He looked behind him, torn over what to do. He needed to explain to Clara what had happened, he owed it to her considering how, at some point, she'd save Danni's life. He also needed to get to the bottom of this Wi-Fi business, people had probably already died from it and they couldn't let it continue. But he didn't want to leave Danni behind, and she'd been doing so well. She'd even come out of the TARDIS and she'd been worried about this 'new' Clara despite herself. He'd wanted to keep that going.

Danni smirked, leaning up slightly like she was about to tell him a secret, "And, without me there, you know what you can take?" His brows furrowed until it came to him, something he'd not done since Rose. She smiled at how happy he looked and he couldn't have been more in love with her if he'd tried. He pulled her in for a kiss before spinning on the spot, grabbing the monitor and typing into the keyboard he'd pulled it to.

"This is this address of the cafe." He told her, pressing the last key with a flourish, "Press _this_ button," He pointed to a small, square blue one, "and the TARDIS will bring you straight to me. Are you sure you'll be okay?" She rolled her eyes, pushing him towards the hallway.

"I'm a big girl, I'm sure I'll find something to read." He grinned, dashing out into the hallway and turning left, "Wrong way!" She called and he nodded as he walked past the doorway.

"Right." He called and she laughed. She actually didn't know which way the garage was, but she'd guessed he hadn't gone the right way.

_~0~0~0~_

Danni walked around the console, trying to convince herself she wasn't bored. She'd gone to the library, but none of the books really grabbed her fancy. So she'd headed to the bedroom to sort through the clothes she'd stored in there for easy access; the TARDIS wardrobe was brilliant but infinite clothes made finding anything specific rather difficult. Plus, she'd never been one for separate bedrooms and dressing rooms. All her stuff was in the bedroom, why would she want her clothes to be somewhere else?

She hadn't realised how bright she had been. Everything was blue or red or purple. Nothing was classy and calm. Why had anyone let her out of the TARDIS looking like a Christmas tree? There was nothing wrong with a bit of monochrome smartness, it was sophisticated in her opinion. Well, it was now, anyway.

She'd managed to almost completely empty out her wardrobe apart from her wedding dress and a few calmer pieces of clothing. She needed to go through the TARDIS wardrobe for some more items, some much more suitable tops and trousers. She'd taken the giant pile with her, but the task suddenly seemed incredibly boring.

Everything was boring when she was on her own. That's what she'd learnt down in the crypt, but she hadn't wanted to go with Clara. She still didn't trust the girl, even if her confused act seemed genuine. The Doctor thought this was Clara before her Clara, but she still didn't like it. She needed a break, a breather to get her head around it. It was one of the reasons she'd suggested the motorbike. She, personally, hated it so he never really had a chance to go out on it. If Clara could handle the anti-grav bike, then that _was_ a point in her favour.

She felt bad for the Doctor, she really did. She dragged her hand across the smooth metal of the console with a sigh. He just wanted her to 'back to normal', but she wasn't even sure what that was anymore. Before she'd regenerated, if they'd been on a crashing plane she would have loved it, but she'd not even appreciated the ridiculousness of it, she'd just been terrified. Everything seemed to scare her on some level. Maybe this was her now, but she hoped to anyone who was listening that it wasn't. The Doctor needed someone to run with, and if she wasn't it she was worried he'd just find someone who would.

She glanced at the doorway. She had the address, maybe she could go meet them. Just for breakfast, then come back again. Clara had to be confused beyond anything by now, he wasn't exactly renowned for his ability to explain what his life was all about. He tended to leave it to her because she didn't talk with large words.

She'd tried on her wedding dress in the bedroom, smiling to herself at the wonderful memory of both her weddings. The dress had still fit, mostly. The chest and hips were a bit baggy, but she'd lost some of her curves and seemed a lot more... straight down this time around. The Doctor didn't seem to mind, but she'd not actually let him see her new body, well, not without clothes on yet. The angry burn on her arm was enough to put her off that for the time being. He'd loved her old body so much, she was afraid he'd miss it.

She'd changed into some actual clothing, though, when she'd managed to take it off. No more running around in her pyjamas unless she wanted to. She kind of wanted to, but it seemed a bit too silly. She read the address of the cafe a couple of times before heading out, making sure to lock the door behind her. As if the TARDIS needed looking after, she could take care of herself and everyone else without breaking a metaphorical sweat.

She pulled out her phone, heading down the street as she jumped onto the internet, then onto Google Maps. Great, he was on the other side of the river! Nothing was ever close, was it?!

_~0~0~0~_

The Doctor shook his head as he headed into the cafe. Had he really just done that? Danced like an idiot? Really? Not even in his signature move, but just some sort of little dad dance. And 27 brains, where had that even come from? Why was he trying to impress her? It wasn't like was attracted to her, he could say that honestly. However, he still had this need to make sure she was impressed by him. Danni obviously wasn't going to take to her straight away, maybe this time he needed to get her onto the TARDIS himself, help Danni warm to her that way. At least then he could keep an eye on her, see where the whole 'Victorian nanny' came from.

He picked up a large chocolate cake displayed on a pedestal. He took a deep sniff of it, taking a moment to wonder if Danni would like a slice before heading to the old man behind the counter.

"Two more cappuccinos over there, please." He ordered and the man put the glass jar he'd been polishing down and headed to the coffee machine.

"One moment, sir." He told him, sounding slightly tired but the Doctor didn't mind. He was too busy trying to decide which cake to take Danni to let her know he'd not forgotten about her the entire breakfast. He was a fan of scones, he thought so anyway, maybe she was too. He should try one just in case, though. He didn't want to take her something disgusting like carrot cake. Who thought putting vegetables into a cake was a good idea?

"You realise you haven't the slightest chance of saving your little friend?" The Doctor looked up from the scone he was about to take a bit out of, confused by the question the barista had asked him.

"Sorry, what?" The flash of blue surprised him and he had to stop himself looking around for a time-jumping redhead.

"I said one moment, sir." The barista replied, his accent back in place. Another spark of blue light and he was stood up straight, chucking his hand towel over his arm like a waiter, "I said, there is not the slightest chance you can save your little friend." The Doctor leant in closer, eyes squinting as he tried to work out what exactly the old man was implying, "And don't annoy the old man, he isn't, in fact, speaking." A flash blue had the old man go back to his work, confusing the Doctor even more. If he wasn't speaking, who was using the man as a microphone?

"I'm speaking." He turned to see a waitress stood behind him, round black tray in hand. She had the straightened posture the barista held just moments earlier, almost too straight to be someone's natural way of standing, "Just using whatever's to hand. Oh, she's rather pretty, isn't she? Do you like her?" The Doctor walked closer, trying to see what exactly was happening to the poor woman. There didn't seem to be any alien technology on her, visibly anyway, "No, wait, I am sorry." She continued, "You seem to have a fancy for blondes, don't you?" His eyes narrowed angrily at the comment.

"You stay away from her." He snarled, missing the flash of blue. The waitress when back to what she was doing, suddenly noticing the angry man towering over her.

"You all right, sir?" She asked nervously and he quickly backed off, unnerved by the sudden change. She had no idea that any time had passed at all, the movement to check her bills on the tray had been entirely too fluid to be anything but where she'd been interrupted.

"Um, yes. Yes, fine." He rambled, passing her the scone before turning and darting out to see Clara. Whoever it was hijacking the people in the cafe had to have been watching them since the day before. That's how they knew Danni had blonde hair, they must have cameras everywhere. That would make sense, if they were infecting people through the Wi-Fi, uploading them to their mysterious hideout then they were probably watching the world as they did so.

Clara was sat at the table still, her chocolate milkshake abandoned to the side of the blue notebook as she continued typing, concentrating so hard she didn't see him come stumbling out of the cafe.

"You OK?" He asked breathlessly.

"Sure," She dismissed, only glancing over at him briefly, "setting up stuff, need a user name."  
>He smiled despite himself, "Learning fast." He commented, reaching into the pocket. Stupid, deep pockets, where was his phone?!<p>

"Clara Oswald for the win!" She retorted before gasping, holding up a finger, "Oswin!" He double took at the exclamation, remembering the Dalek Asylum girl, 'Oswin'. Was this where the name was from?

He shook his head, chucking his phone at her. She caught it as he turned back to head into the cafe.

"While you're doing that, call Danni. Don't stop until she answers and tell her to not leave the TARDIS!" Clara nodded vaguely, putting the phone down next to the laptop. She'd do it in a minute, she was almost in.

_~0~0~0~_

Clara smirked to herself as she put the newly acquired pictures into Face Match, a program she'd had no idea existed until she'd been uploaded, or whatever the Doctor had called it, and these people had put the knowledge into her head. She still wasn't completely sure if she was okay with that, but it was working to her advantage at the moment so she'd keep quiet about it until something bad happened.

As Face Match continued to bring up information about the people working at, apparently, The Strand, she picked up the Doctor's phone and flipped through the contacts to Danni, smiling at the little heart emoji trailing her name. God that was so sweet it was almost sickly. He'd talked a lot about his wife while they'd been eating, like he was constantly needed to remind her that he was married. Maybe he just liked to talk about her, whatever it was, it was adorable.

The phone didn't ring, it just went straight to voicemail so she tried again. Nope, still no answer. Maybe she should tell the Doctor. She glanced towards the cafe door to see Danni heading towards her and she smiled in relief.

"I've just tried to ring you, I think your signal must be out." She told the blonde.

"Signal must be out." Danni replied, standing right next to the table.

"I hacked into their system, and I found them." Clara explained, almost breathless in her excitement, "The Doctor didn't think I could do it, but I did! I really did!"

"You really did." Danni replied.

"The Shard. They're in the Shard. Floor 65." She explained.

"Floor 65." Clara froze, hands poised just about the keyboard as she realised that Danni was repeating her, just like the little girl had done on her stairwell.

"Doctor?" She cried in panic, hoping he'd be able to save her again as Danni straightened up, her head slowly turning around unnaturally to reveal a large dish. Numbers began counting up, an orange bar showing how much had already been uploaded. Clara knew she should run, but she was frozen in her chair, terrified as a blue beam shot out of it, hitting her on the face.

_~0~0~0~_

The Doctor rushed back outside to Clara, knowing exactly why humans were being uploaded from their own bodies just upped the urgency of the situation. Hopefully Clara would have managed to find out their location by now, she'd had more than the five minutes she'd bragged about.

"Clara! Clara!" He called, coming to a stop as he saw Danni's head slowly spin back to face the correct way, showing the dish that sat where her hair would be. His hands clenched by his side, a wave of horror washing over him at the sight of the robot using his wife's image. He knew that it was a robot, that it wasn't the real Danni, who was safe and sound in the TARDIS. The safest place in the universe, and she was waiting for him, oblivious to the anger that appeared at them using her to take Clara. Clara, who was slumped across the table, her face displayed in the dish.

"_Doctor? Doctor, help me. I don't know where I am_." She pleaded, sounding terrified, "_I don't understand. I don't know where I am! Please help me. I don't know where I am! I don't know where I am. Doctor, please, please, help me. I don't know where I am._" He reached into the inside pocket of his jacket, pulling out his screwdriver and pointing it at the dish, fully intent on getting the exact transmission of the broadcast.

"_Doctor?_" The image flickered and he almost dropped the screwdriver in shock as Clara flickered away, replaced by a video of Danni looking vaguely confused as she looked around, "_Doctor? Are you... I don't know where I am. Doctor? I don't know where I am._"

_~0~0~0~_

Down below the cafe, the public below carried on their daily lives, nothing out of the ordinary as they headed to their jobs or their homes. Until, that was, a large mechanical device fell from the top of the building, crashing to the ground with a smash, circuit boards and wires scattering around as it barely missed a young professional who had been on the phone, trying to explain to his boss why he was late for work.

A group of them exclaimed, rushing over to the man to make sure he was okay. He was fine, apart from being a bit shaken but he had to get to work and could someone just talk to his boss for a moment? He was ushered into the building which the machine had fallen from, to be looked after and eventually taken to the hospital where was told the shivering was just shock and a couple of days off work would just do the trick.

Nobody noticed the blonde woman tucked away inside the alley by the recycling bins, not even the people who had headed there to do their bit for the environment. But then again, the Wi-Fi was everywhere and they weren't meant to see her anyway.

_~0~0~0~_

The Doctor moved away from the edge of the building, panting slightly at the effort it had taken to chuck the robot off the side. His arms ached, the robot had been extremely heavy, but he'd just been so angry. They'd gotten to Clara, they'd gotten to _Danni, _which meant that she was slumped over somewhere like Clara. Unlike Clara, though, he had absolutely no idea where she was. There was no way they'd gotten to her in the TARDIS, he hadn't told her but when he'd entered the coordinates for the cafe he'd blocked all outside Wi-Fi just in case. There was no way she could have even connected to their network, so she had to have left the TARDIS. She was more than likely somewhere on the route to the cafe, but he didn't know that. They might have let her drop where she stood like they had with Clara, but they could have taken her. She was trapped in the Wi-Fi, he had to get her out!

He ran a hand through his hair, brain working a mile a minute, trying to come up with a plan. He couldn't fail this time, he'd already let her get hurt, even when he had been assured of her safety, something always got her. It was like the Wire all over again. Maybe she'd been trying to save someone else, that was the kind of person she was.

He shook his head, there was no time to think about that. He needed to find out where they were, and fast. He grabbed Clara's laptop, seeing the mass of Facebook pages open and frowned for a moment. She was supposed to be finding the location of the Wi-Fi, yet she was on social media?

They all worked at the Strand. He smiled, brushing his hand across Clara's hair for a moment in thanks. Humans, thinking in such a human way he wouldn't have even thought of. Danni would have loved to see that. He frowned, he still needed a plan. How to get them to re-download his wife and friend, hopefully along with anyone else who may have been uploaded and still accessible. He didn't know if they were stored or eaten, the person who had taken over the cafe seemed to imply there was a 'stock' of uploaded human minds. Even if they couldn't get back to their bodies, they all deserved to be free and not trapped, scared and not knowing where they were.

He looked over at the edge again, his frown turning thoughtful as he absentmindedly flicked his screwdriver a few times to change the settings. He needed to get in, but he also needed to stay nearby, because if Danni had been heading this way, he needed to find her quickly. She'd be disorientated and scared and it was his job to take those feelings away.

An idea in mind, he dashed back into the cafe, jacket flaring behind him like a cape. Not all of those people would have been actual humans, there had to be another robot somewhere in this building.

_~0~0~0~_

In a dark office at the top of the Strand, Miss Kizlet watched over the shoulder of one of her employees as they followed the Doctor through the streets of London, heading towards them at great speed on a motorbike of all things. Sending him the transmission of his wife had been a bit naughty, if she said so herself, but her Client had been very insistent on getting the Doctor to their base as soon as possible, and that his wife had been the best way to do that.

She hadn't expected him to destroy the robot, that had been a wonderful surprise on her part. Her Client had told her many things about the man with the blue box, she was looking forward to meeting him.

He came to a stop just at the foot of the building, next to a large man, eating some chips who spent too much time on the Wi-Fi for his own good. A quick flick on her tablet had him under her control and she used him to turn to the Doctor.

"Really," She sighed and on the screen his head snapped to look at the man, "Doctor, a motorbike? It hardly seems like you."

"I rode this in the Anti-Grav Olympics, 2074." He replied calmly, looking down at the motorbike, "I came last. Danni wasn't impressed, she never did like going upside down."

"The building is in lock-down." She pointed out smugly, "I'm afraid you're not coming in."

"Did you even hear the word anti-grav?" He retorted and even she was taken slightly by surprise as he slammed his hand down on the fuel tank and the bike sparked into life. He twisted the throttle and was off like a shot. She followed him with a tilt of the man's head as his bike went vertical and he started to drive _up_ the side of the building.

"Seriously?" Her little minion, Alexei, asked, gesturing to the screen in disbelief, "He can do that? He can really, actually do that?"

"Oh dear Lord." She muttered, a tiny ounce of trepidation in the pit of her stomach as they all watched him, stunned. Until there was a loud smash of glass, something obviously shattering.

"I think that was your office." Her right hand man, Mahlet, pointed out. She straightened up, fastening the buttons on her jacket.

"Excuse me," She told them, "I believe it's someone to see me." She walked towards her office, head held high, ready to meet this man her Client had been so adamant she kept an eye out for. He was quite clever, she gave him that, but she couldn't see what the big deal was. Well, it wasn't her place to question it, as long as she did as she was told she was taken care of.

She opened the door to see a motorcycle parked in the centre of the room and the man of the hour behind her desk, legs crossed and resting on the surface, still wearing that ridiculous helmet. Really, how did he manage to land a wife in the first place?

"Do come in." She told him. He was tapping against his own thigh when he looked up, features hard, obviously not a very happy man.

"Download her." He demanded.

"Sorry about the draft." She continued, motioning to the windows with a wave of her hand. He pulled his feet off her desk, leaning forward in the chair.

"Download my wife back into her body, right now." He snarled.

"Your friend won't be happy to know you've overlooked her." She replied pointedly.

"Clara comes next." The Doctor dismissed, "Everyone comes next. Put Danni back now."

"I can't." She told him and he shook his head.

"Yes, you will." He retorted angrily.

"She's a fully integrated part of the data cloud now." She explained with a shake of her head, stepping further into the room, "She can't be separated."

"Then download the entire cloud." He commanded, "Everyone you've trapped in there."

"You realise what would happen?" She asked curiously, walking towards the window.

"Yes, those still with bodies to go home to would be free." He replied, standing up to walk around the desk and join her.

"A tiny number. Most would simply die." She pointed out. He shrugged.

"Then they die." He said coldly, "I don't know what your 'Client' has told you about me, but playing to my conscience will not work when it comes to my wife." He smirked evilly, bopping her on the nose, "Give the order."

"And why would I do that?" She asked, confused.

"Because I'm going to motivate you." He told her in a singsong voice, leaning right over her, trying to intimidate her. It wouldn't work, her Client had made her practically fearless. He walked around her and she followed, now facing out of the window, "Any second now."

"You ridiculous man!" She mocked, "Why did you even come here? Whatever for?"

"I didn't." He told her.

"What?" She asked, because he was there, stood right in front of her.

"I'm still in the cafe." He explained, "I'm finishing my coffee. Lovely spot."

"What are you talking about?" She asked quickly, that feeling of dread reappearing. There was only one way she knew for a person to be two places at once, and she was becoming increasingly worried about what him being there actually meant.

"You hack people." He replied, slowing taking his helmet on, "Me? I'm old-fashioned. I hack technology. Here's your motivation! Oh," He leant in closer, "don't forget to tell them, I'm always coming for her."

"Tell who?" She asked quietly.

"_Everyone._" He whispered. Her eyes widened in horror as his neck straightened, his head slowly spinning around to reveal a dish. She quickly backed away, crouching down in front of her desk, shaking in fear of what she knew was about to happen.

"No. No. No! Not me! Not me!" She begged, but it was too late as a blue beam shot out, engulfing her completely.

_~0~0~0~_

The Doctor sipped at his coffee slowly, keeping a close eye on Clara, making sure that the data cloud was downloaded. The moment Clara started stirring he was up out of his chair, he darted off, running down the stairs and out of the building. It was times like this he was glad of all the running he'd done over his lifetimes, all those moments had built up his stamina and he managed to get over the bridge and to the TARDIS in what really had been no time at all, but had felt like incredibly too long. He fumbled with his key, throwing the door open.

"Danni!" He cried, slamming the door shut behind him. He couldn't see her, she wasn't anywhere. He ran up to the console, searching the TARDIS for her but she wasn't there. He'd been so sure she'd have beaten him back, but what if she didn't know where she was? He picked up the TARDIS handset, holding it to his ear but it went straight to voicemail and he slammed it down.

He had no way of tracking her down. He'd just have to go outside, start asking people if they'd seen her. Did he have a photo of her? He was sure he had one on his phone, but in his haste to get back to her he'd left it with Clara. As if sensing his thoughts the TARDIS pulled up a picture of her on its monitor, but he'd broken the printer when he'd tried to fix the heating.

She was all alone out there, and he'd promised she'd never feel alone again. What if he never found her again? What if they were separated for the rest of time? He needed her, he couldn't be alone again?

"Theta?" He spun, surprised as the door opened and Danni stepped in, looking dirty and dishevelled, her eyes squinting as she tried to focus, "Doctor? Are you here?" He nodded, dashing from around the console to her side, almost crying in relief.

"Are you okay?" He asked, "Where did you go? Do you remember anything?"

"I remember not knowing where I was." She explained slowly, "I woke up on the floor by the cafe, but I thought it might be best for me to come back here." Her brows furrowed as she looked around, "Where's Clara?"

"I left her at the cafe." He replied sheepishly, stroking her cheek with the back of his hand, "I knew you were hurt, you know I can't stand back and leave you on your own."

"I'm fine." She promised, "I just feel a bit disorientated." He nodded, taking her hand and threading it through his arm as he tried to support her.

"I'm sure you're fine." He promised, "But I'll do a few tests, just to check. I don't want to overlook anything when it comes to you, Danni-Girl."

"Oh, don't fuss." She scolded lightly, "I'll be fine-"

"Please." He interupted, "Let me do this, okay?" She looked up at him, he was looking down at her with pleading eyes. He obviously needed to make sure she hadn't been hurt, it actually had nothing to do with the fact she might have been, it was for himself.

"Okay." She sighed, trying to make it sound like she wasn't happy to give in, "I have one condition."

"What?" He asked and she pulled a cheeky grin.

"Tell me you love me." She challenged and he stopped in his tracks, spinning on his heels so that he could face her. One hand snuck around to the small of her back, the other threaded itself in her hair, his palm on her cheek.

"I've told you, I adore you." He told her, stepping even closer to her, "You're incredibly sexy." He brushed his lips against her, "Clumsy." She gasped in offense but he just brushed his lips against her again, "Your driving skills are, quite frankly, atrocious."

"Now wait a minute, Spaceman!" She exclaimed, just to be cut off by another kiss.

"You make me want to be better." He continued, "You make me better." He kissed her again, "My hearts belong to you, no one else." No kiss this time, but she flushed pink, her breath catching slightly as she stared at him, "I love you, Danielle Fielding. And I'm always, always coming back for you." She reached up, grabbing the front of his jacket and pulling him in for kiss, one he gladly let her deepen as he held her tightly.

_~0~0~0~_

A couple of days later found Clara back in the Maitland household, carrying on like nothing had happened but it was all she could think about. She carried on with her self-appointed duties, cleaning up after the children, making sure their house was tidy so they had one less thing to worry about. Then, out of the corner of her eye, she spotted the TARDIS parked back outside.

She quickly made an excuse, dashing outside and up to the box, pausing to calm herself down. She knocked casually, like she wasn't too bothered whether there was an answer or not.

"_Come in."_ She smiled, pushing the door open and stepping inside. She took a moment, leaning against the door, to appreciate the interior. Bigger on the inside, there was no way that would ever get boring.

"So... They comes back, do they?" She called over to the Doctor, who was sat on one of the staircases, pair of glasses perched on his nose as he read a book. Danni sat next to him, his free arm wrapped around her waist.

"Not always." Danni told her, "Only for the special ones."

"I'm special then, am I?" Clara replied, pleasantly surprised. Danni jumped up, placing a kiss on top of the Doctor's head.

"You intrigue him." She explained, the Doctor watching her over the top of the round lenses of his glasses as she headed down the stairs, "I'm not so sure, yet." She smiled almost saucily, surprising the Doctor into a grin of his own, "You've got a lot of competition, Clara Oswald." She walked out of the console room, letting the smile drop as she glanced back over the shoulder. She knew what was going to happen next, the Doctor had done everything in his power to make sure that she was okay with it. She'd promised she was, if he wanted Clara there then that was up to him, but she also hoped Clara wouldn't say yes.

He was always drawn to mysteries, the unknown and the new, that's why he'd fallen for her in the first place. He could deny it as much as he liked, but it wasn't her personality that had first caught his attention, it had been the manipulator. And now here was another girl with a much better mystery than her own. She just hoped the Doctor wouldn't be too drawn in by her.

~0~0~0~

"You didn't answer my question." The Doctor told Clara as he placed the book down by his side. He'd only been reading so Danni could read with him, alone it seemed a bit boring.

"What question?" She asked.

"You don't seem like a nanny." He replied and she squeezed her lips together, wondering if she should tell him the truth. She walked down the gangway to the centre of the room.

"I was going to travel. I came to stay for a week before I left and during that week..." She trailed off and he smiled sadly.

"She died," She didn't confirm it, but the look on his face said everything, "so you're returning the favour. But 101 places to see, and you haven't been to any of them, have you? That's why you keep the book."

"I keep the book cos I'm still going." She corrected, skipping to the console. She spun one of the dials on the top, wondering what it did. How could this strange box travel across all of time and space?

"But you don't run out on the people you care about." He took his glasses off, putting them in his jacket pocket, "Wish I was more like that."

"You left me to find Danni." Clara pointed out, "I'd say that was more like that." He smiled softly, nodding.

"I'll always go back for her." He replied quietly before standing up, "You know, the thing about a time machine," he put both hands on the railings, swinging down and landing on the floor, "you can run away all you like and still be home in time for tea," He joined her at the console, "so what do you say? Anywhere. All of time and space, right outside those doors." She stared for a moment before she started laughing, startling him slightly as she began to walk away from him backwards.

"Does this work? Eh? Is this actually what you do? Do you just crook your finger and people just jump in your snog box and fly away?" She walked around him, making him turn as she leant on another part of the console.

"It is not a snog box!" He exclaimed.

"Does your wife know that?" She countered and his mouth opened and closed for a moment before he pointed at her.

"I told you, not for you." He warned, "Keep your lips off my wife."

"Shouldn't she get to decide that?" Clara pointed out, crossing her arms like she always did when she knew she'd won an argument, "I think I should judge whether this is a snog box or not."

"Starting when?" He shot at her and she thought about it. She wanted to go with him, she'd wanted to travel for as long as she could remember, but she also couldn't just come running because he asked her to. It had to be on her terms.

"Come back tomorrow, ask me again." She finally suggested and was completely satisfied by the look of bewilderment on his face.

"Why?" he asked.

"Cos tomorrow Danni might be here and I might say yes." She walked back around him, heading for the door, "Sometime after 7.00 OK for you?"

"It's a time machine, any time's OK." He grumbled to himself.

"See you then." She called.

"Clara?" The Doctor calling her name had her stopping in her tracks, hand ready to unlock the door.

"Uh-huh?"

"In your book there was a leaf, why?" He asked her and she looked at him, a secret smile on her face.

"That wasn't a leaf, that was page one." With that she left, counting down the minutes until tomorrow. The Doctor watched her go for a moment before running to the hallway, flipping a switch on his way past as he went to tell Danni this strange turn of events.

_~0~0~0~_

_Urgh, I'm sorry. Next chapter will be better, I promise xxxx_


	10. The Impossible Girl

The Doctor turned over, crossing his arms as he tried to get comfortable, his legs bent up awkwardly. He honestly had no idea how Danni managed to fall asleep on this sofa so much, it was entirely too short for anyone to lie down on, let along get into any sort of comfortable position.

Then again he was completely positive that the sofa in the entertainment room used to be bigger. In fact, he was so sure he remembered cuddling up with Danni on this sofa on more than one occasion, it was the reason that he'd chosen this one over the hundreds of others in the TARDIS. He rolled onto his back, looking suspiciously up at the ceiling.

"Is this you?" He asked the TARDIS, as if he was expecting her to reply. She would have, for too short a while, but nothing now. Not even a hum, "You're ganging up on me again, aren't you?" He grumbled. Oh, _there_ was the hum. Yep, definitely ganging up on him. Great.

He had known Danni wasn't going to be entirely happy with him inviting Clara to travel with them, but he'd thought that she'd have been reassured by the fact that she hadn't said yes straight away. He was going to take them out somewhere nice, somewhere calm just to ease her back into the travelling once again, then Clara could have joined them when she was more comfortable.

She'd screamed at him. He couldn't remember her being that angry at him, before, but it radiated from her. He still hadn't confronted her over the projecting, so he'd felt it full force. She'd felt threatened in her own home, which was something he'd not intended, and he tried to explain that to her as he'd followed her like a lost puppy to the bedroom. She'd slammed the door in his face, but he'd continued to promise that Clara wasn't going to hurt either of them, and that once they'd started travelling she'd see that as well.

She'd opened the door, and he'd smiled until she'd shoved a pillow at him. His pillow, it turned out, and told him that he had to sleep on the sofa, then shut the door once again.

He'd heard about this 'sleeping on the sofa' thing, but he'd never really paid much attention to it. Rory had once complained about it, Amy ha- used to have this habit of sending him there when they'd had an argument. The Doctor had never seen the point, as he rarely slept and if Rory was wasting time sleeping then that was the problem, not where.

He rolled over again, grabbing the pillow from underneath his head and pulling it up to his chest as he looked at the back of the sofa. He really was starting to see why Rory hadn't liked this. Even though he never really slept, he still liked to be there while Danni did. He'd read, or even just daydream while she wrapped herself up in the covers and dreamt without him. Sometimes he'd sneak in after she'd gone to bed, just to watch her for a while. It seemed a shame to waste all the continuous time together when it rarely happened.

Not like that was the issue any more, but he still liked to be there for her. Especially since she was still having those terrible nightmares.

He shot up, alarmed, as he realised that she was _on her own with those nightmares._ Of course, with the TARDIS shrinking the sofa, he then promptly fell off the sofa, arms flailing in a vain attempt to keep himself upright. He hit the floor with a thud, but it didn't stop him for long. He pushed himself up and darted out of the room, turning around a couple of corners before quietly opening the bedroom door.

She was in the middle of the bed, cocooned up in the duvet much like her old body had done. The curling up into a tiny ball was new, though, as was the bowed head. It would have been adorable if he couldn't feel her terror from by the door. It had been a couple of hours since he'd tried to sleep on the sofa, had she been scared all that time?

He sat gently on the bed, not wanting to scare her even by waking her up, and he brushed her hair from her face, placing a finger against her temple.

_~0~0~0~_

_Danni fought. She fought as hard as she could, but it was never enough. He held her tight, his hands squeezed and even as she tried to beg him to stop, nothing came out of her mouth. She wanted to scream, but no sound ever came out. Why wouldn't he save her? Why did he watch?_

_Eleven flickered to Ten, and back to Eleven, stood to the side, features twisted as she was pushed to the ground, body covered by another. She wanted him to stop smirking, she wanted his eyes to stop being so big, she wanted him to help her! Why did he never help her? He promised he would!_

_She opened her mouth again, eyes squeezed shut, as she screamed one word as loud as she could._

_~0~0~0~_

"_No_." Danni's eyes shot open, panting hard as the images fizzled away into nothingness. She looked around, seeing the Doctor there, smiling softly as he helped her sit up. She cupped his face, confused why his eyes suddenly relaxed her so much. Just his eyes.

"It's okay." He promised her, "I'm here now." She smiled shakily, still uncertain about why she was so scared, but she just pulled him in for a hug, resting her head on his shoulder. She didn't say a word, she just held him tightly and he gently stroked her hair.

It wasn't until he'd whispered that he loved her in her ear in Gallifreyan that she'd pulled away, sitting cross legged on the bed.

"Was it him again?" He asked gently, not wanting her to know that he knew exactly what the dream was about. She didn't shake her head, or nod. She looked downwards, then out into the room, chewing on her fingernail.

"What if..." She started quietly, trailing off as she stared for a bit longer. He didn't push her, he could see her trying to form the thought in her head, "I didn't want it," she paused again, "as much as I thought I did?" She turned to look at him again and her eyes shone with the terror of the realisation. She looked at him pleadingly, like she was asking for his help. Or reassurance, he wasn't sure which.

Then, with the minutest shake of her head, it was gone, "I thought you were supposed to be sleeping on the couch?"

"The TARDIS shrunk it." He grumbled and Danni smirked slightly.

"That's what you get for inviting Clara." She retorted. He opened his mouth to argue, but she shook her head, "No, you keep claiming the TARDIS is my home too, and if this is going to work as a proper marriage, you should at least consult me on these things. I leave you alone for a few minutes to say thank you to her, and suddenly she's travelling with us!"

"I know, but-"

"She terrifies me, Theta!" She interrupted, "I can't travel with her, I'm sick of being scared!"

He waved his hands in front of him, something he always did when he panicked, and he always panicked when he could see her about to cry, "Okay, I know." He promised, taking her hands in his and stilling them both, "But you really don't have anything to be scared about."

"How can you say that?" She asked, "She's appeared all throughout time and space, always the same woman but with no indication that they know about each other! What is she, Theta? Have the Silence taken hold of her, too? Is she supposed to be the new River because she didn't do her job properly?"

"No, she's definitely human." He promised her, stroking the back of her hand with his thumb and he saw her relax slightly, "I scanned her, all human." He smiled, an idea popping into his head, "How about we check?"

"Check?" She repeated.

"We'll dive back into her past, follow Clara Oswald from the beginning of her life until now. Make sure she is who she claims to be and if she's not, we'll be know what to do?" She frowned, obviously not keen on the idea.

"What if she is, though?" Danni pointed out, "What does that mean for the other Claras? What if it's all still to happen for her?"

"Then we'll look out for that as well." He replied.

"Oh, I don't know." She murmured, "I still don't trust her." He pushed her hair behind her ear, cupping her cheek with his hand.

"You know I would never put you in harm's way." He told her gently, "Trust me." She rolled her eyes then nodded, giggling when he let go of her face to straighten his bowtie.

"You're a child!" She exclaimed, batting at him, "Go on, show me her past then I'll _think_ about it." He jumped off the bed, helping her up.

"Are you getting changed?" He asked and she shook her head.

"Pyjamas are cool." She replied, linking their fingers together as they headed out into the hallway.

"There would have been a time when you would have been horrified at spying at someone's past." He pointed out and she shrugged.

"When it comes to you, I'm not afraid to do anything to make sure you're safe." She explained, "If she doesn't understand that, she really shouldn't be on the TARDIS anyway." He beamed, spinning the spot before taking her face in his hands, placing a kiss on her forehead. He dashed up to the console, grabbing the monitor and pulling it around to where he needed it.

"How's the countdown coming along?" Danni asked, noticing the Gallifreyan symbols that were displayed on the screen, wondering if it was the countdown. As much as she didn't want her regeneration to mean that she had different parents, she loved her mum and dad dearly and still missed them every day, she just wanted to know what had happened when she'd been shot. Was it just a one-time deal because of her continuous, unprotected flying through the vortex, or was it more permanent? Was she going to be able to live with the Doctor forever after all?

"Er..." He frowned, giving the monitor a quick look over, "Oh, ages yet. No matter." He quickly turned to something else, "Let's find out who Clara Oswald actually is."

"You know, I think you just play pretend you can read that stuff." She teased, taking hold of the console with both hands in preparation of the bumpy ride that always came with his driving.

"I can too!" He replied defensively, "It's more complicated than just your small, insignificant human words. Gallifreyan holds meaning, moments of time that can't simply be 'read'." She rolled her eyes.

"I feel like I should be offended by the 'insignificant human words' remark." She told him pointedly and he grinned cheekily, pulling her in front of him, arm on either side of her as he pulled and prodded the console, sending them into a twisting, turning spiral as they shot down Clara's time line.

_~0~0~0~_

It was windy. That's all Danni cared about, and she wasn't very happy about it. If the Doctor was trying to convince her to warm to Clara, making her freeze to death in her pyjamas was _not_ the way to go about it. The bus shelter they were sat in gave very little cover and if he thought otherwise he might have been more of an idiot than she gave him credit for.

"It's freezing." She told him, her teeth chattering. He looked down at her through the glasses Amy had left behind, looking rather confused.

"You're always cold." He told her, "I don't see how that's my fault."

"If you knew when they met, you should have known the weather." She retorted, "Why did you let me come out in my pyjamas if it was going to be so windy?"

"Because I love those pyjamas." He replied simply, going back to his annual. She looked down at her pyjamas, they were just her red ones.

"What's so special about them?" She asked, confused.

"Everything." Was his vague reply. She waited for a moment for him to elaborate, but when she realised she wasn't getting any more from him, she prodded the comic he was reading, making it flap even more in the wind.

"Was The Beano really necessary?" She asked him.

"The Beano is always necessary." He replied, glancing down at her from the corner of his eyes. The old Danni would have read with him, this one seemed to be more 'adult', but the grin on her face showed that she really didn't want him to change from his own childish ways.

"You are such a child." She said through chattering teeth and he put the comic down, using his own leg to anchor it as he quickly shrugged his jacket off. She protested, but he ignored her as he draped it over her shoulders.

"Thanks." She muttered, pulling it around herself as he went back to reading. He caught her pulling it tighter around herself, sniffing it slightly to smell him on it and he smirked smugly to himself.

"It's not that cold." He retorted, "Don't know why you're complaining." She narrowed his eyes, ready to tell him off but he nodded down the street, "Here he comes."

From over the hill that they were sat just down from, a man appeared, fighting with the wind as he tried to look at his map. He was in a suit and had brown hair, just like Clara's.

"Are you sure?" She asked him sceptically.

"You doubt me?" He asked, mock-offended as the man was hit in the face with a leaf, stumbling into the road and into the path of an oncoming car. He was only just saved in time by the woman who would turn out to be Clara's mum.

"Not now." She replied honestly and he nudged her as she giggled, "Maybe your driving reminded her of her dad." She mused as the couple walked back the way the man had come from.

"What's that supposed to mean?" He asked indignantly as she stood up, kissing him on the cheek.

"Nothing, sweetie!" She told him happily, "Come on, next stop."

_~0~0~0~_

It was dark and raining, but Clara's mum and dad didn't care as they huddled under the umbrella, her father giving her the leaf that had blown into his face. As they kissed, cementing in both their minds that this was _the_ relationship for them, the Doctor ducked back behind the tree he and Danni were hiding behind. Danni held her own umbrella aloft, black with white polka dots with frilly edges, to let the damp Doctor back under.

"Did it go well?" She whispered and he nodded, pocketing his glasses as he did.

"There was kissing and everything." He replied just as quietly, hands sneaking their way onto her hips and pulling her close.

"What are you doing?" She asked and he smirked, drops of water dripping off his nose and onto her.

"Making this go very well." He told her, dipping his head to kiss her, lips slowly coaxing hers until she returned it, hands automatically wrapping around his neck, umbrella covering neither of them. Eventually she gave up completely, dropping it onto the ground as she pushed up on her tiptoes, pressing against him firmly as their lips moved in a harmony that had been built from years of practice.

The rain seemed to pick up after that point, but neither of them noticed as it poured down on them, all the Doctor noticed was the faint taste of the water mixed in with that of his wife. Her pyjamas clung to her skin, and even though he knew it was still very much off the cards at that moment, it just made him want her all the more.

_~0~0~0~_

The next day found them in a park, this time Danni dressed in her clothes once again. Clara's mum and dad had taken their little girl, who can't have been more than 6 or 7. She had to admit, baby-Clara was absolutely gorgeous, with her headband and bright red wells and coat.

Then, of course, she'd kicked that ball like it had attacked her and it bounced straight off the Doctor's head, sending him to the floor and she couldn't help the loud, unrestrained laugh that broke from her hips. Especially as he jumped up, hands out in front of him as if he was going to actually physically fight off whatever he had been attacked by.

"Oh, my stars!" Clara's mum exclaimed, running over to the couple, "Are you all right?"

"Oh, he's fine." Danni replied, placing a kiss on his cheek as he opened his mouth to protest. The kiss cheered him up, the woman noted, and he lowered his hands, nodding.

"Fine! Marvellous. Refulgent." He listed off, gesturing to the sky with his hands, a sure sign he was nervous and Danni frowned.

"Refulgent?" She repeated and he shrugged, taking her hand and walking up to the Clara's mum.

"Possibly a touch embarrassed." He added before suddenly looking worried, "That's not dangerous, is it?"

"What's not?" Clara's mum asked.

"Embarrassment." He whispered, sounding as worried as he looked. She looked to Danni, almost to confirm that he wasn't hurt more than he was admitting, but the shrug the blonde woman replied with just said that it was quite normal behaviour from him.

"Not usually. Not to my knowledge." She promised the strange man in purple.

"Good." He replied, relaxing as the smile returned back on his face, "Hey, phew!" Clara's dad walked the little girl over, smiling apologetically at the pair.

"Mate, I'm so sorry." He told the Doctor, motioning to Clara, "She wants to be Bryan Robson."

"No worries, my fault. No harm done." He promised, turning to talk to Clara to make sure she knew that she hadn't hurt him, but Danni had beat him to it. She crouched in front of the girl, smiling warmly.

"Hello, sweetie." She greeted the little girl, "I have to say, that's an amazing kick you've got there." The girl shied away slightly, taking comfort in her mum's presence even though she was obviously happy at the compliment, "What's your name?"

"Clara." The little girl whispered quietly.

"Oh, that's a beautiful name." Danni praised, "I'm Danni, which is a boy's name really, isn't it?" Clara nodded, "I bet that's not the first time you've kicked a ball into someone's head, is it?" Clara shook her head, "Is it always that funny?" Clara's face broke out into that secret smile that appeared when they knew they'd done something cheeky but they were quite proud of it really. She nodded and Danni nodded to, "Thought so."

The Doctor watched her, once again fully amazed by how she was with the little girl. She seemed to be much more comfortable around children, he remembered her heading straight for the children Victorian Clara was looking after and making sure they were okay before anyone else. And Stormageddon, she'd loved that little baby. He could watch her light up like that all day.

She pushed up off the floor, slightly surprised by the look of adoration the Doctor had on his face as he smiled back at her. He leant down, brushing his lips against hers just briefly.

"Come on, let's let them get on with their day." He told Danni, who nodded.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Clara's mum asked and the Doctor nodded.

"Oh, wonderful." He replied, giving her the impression he wasn't talking about the bump on the head before he and the blonde woman walked off, the woman waving to Clara.

"How did he manage to bag her dressed like that?" Her husband asked and she smacked him on the arm.

"Be nice." She scolded.

_~0~0~0~_

Danni hadn't wanted to go to the funeral, it just a bit too close to her Clara's for her to be comfortable with it. But Clara's mum had died, and she'd been as sad as any girl would be who lost her mum too soon. She closed her eyes as she sat on the stairs, waiting for the Doctor to return. Could she even picture her mum anymore? She'd been blonde, but more of a dull blonde than what Danni was now. She was pretty, Danni remembered that, with blue eyes. But what did she look like?

She jolted as the door opened and the Doctor stepped in, looking troubled as he walked over and sat next to her.

"She's entirely normal." He stated, "She's just a girl."

"She can't be." Danni protested, "What about my Clara? What about Oswin?"

"That Clara is just a girl." He replied, "She can't be, but she is."

"It doesn't make any sense." Danni said, leaning on his arm, "I don't like it."

"Me neither." He admitted, wrapping an arm around her waist, "Something is going to happen to her, and I don't know what. I really don't like not knowing."

"Whatever happens to her must happen in her future." Danni reasoned, "So, can we stop it?" He shrugged.

"Depends what it is." He replied, "But we can try." She looked up at him.

"Do you want to try?" She asked and he shot her an apologetic smile.

"If it's to do with me, I'd like to try." He admitted and she nodded before shaking her head, pushing away from him.

"I don't want her staying on the TARDIS." She told him, waving her hands in front of her, crossing them over each other in a 'no' motion, "I can't, I'm sorry Theta. I can't have her here and be here too! I can't, if she's staying then I'll have to go somewhere else and I don't want to have to do that and-"

"Hey." He interrupted gently, pulling her back in for a hug, "That's not going to happen, okay?" Her eyes were wide as she stared at him, scared but with a glimmer of hope.

"It's not?" She asked and he nodded.

"We can watch her from afar." He explained, "Take her for a trip, drop her back, see how she fares in an alien atmosphere. Then we'll drop her off, come back for her. She doesn't have to live on the TARDIS."

"Really?"

"Of course not." He smiled, thumb running down her cheek, "It's always you, Danni-Girl." She felt herself slowly calm down, nodding to herself.

"Okay. I can do that." She agreed, "Where are we taking her?"

"Well, I was thinking somewhere calm to begin with. Maybe somewhere not so foreign to you, I thought it might give you one thing less to worry about." He tapped her nose, "I know how you worry these days." She pulled her tongue out at him, "But, I also didn't want it to be boring for you, so I wanted somewhere you didn't really see as well."

"Did you come up with something?" She asked and he nodded, looking rather proud of himself.  
>"Akhaten." He told her, "I know you saw the Silent there, but we both know that was part of, you know," he motioned her up and down and she rolled her eyes at his tact, "but we did see a little of it and it was fine. Plus, seeing alien wares is always a good way to ease someone into travelling." Danni nodded, agreeing before a thought occurred to her, a memory from before she regenerated.<p>

_~0~0~0~_

"_Where's he taken you before?" She asked urgently and Clara frowned, surprised by the question._

"_What do you mean?" She asked, "Like, places?" Danni nodded._

"_Places, people! Anything, tell me." She begged._

"_Do we really have time for..." The Doctor asked nervously but Danni glared at him angrily._

"_Let her speak, Spaceman!" She snapped before turning back to Clara, her hand still clinging to her arm, "Tell me."_

"_Er..." Clara thought back for a moment, "Well, the first place was Akhaten." Danni looked over at the Doctor again._

_~0~0~0~_

"You took Future-Clara to Akhaten first." She told him, surprising him slightly, "You took her loads of places you've taken me before, actually." He smiled.

"Perfect." He declared, jumping up, "That must be it, then. Follow that course, try and work out where she goes wrong." He held her hand out to him, "Ready, Danni-Girl?" She took it, letting him help her up.

"As I'll ever be."

_~0~0~0~_

_Hello! I know, I'm (technically) posting on the right day and everything, if you can believe it! It's like I was almost prepared!_

_I have updated Home For Christmas, I hope if you haven't already, you've gone to check it out, because I'm rather happy with it so far and I'd love to know if you like it to. Believe it or not, it had bugger all to do with Christmas, so I hope you'll give it a go!_

_And I know I've been severely neglecting my other fanfics, I am hoping to get back on track this week with an update of Faye, and Amelia next week, but as I'm trying to get Home For Christmas finished as well, I don't want to promise anything. Faye is my next port of call, though, so keep an eye out!_

_Posted a bit of Danni/Twelve cuteness and 2 Danni/Twelve smuts on my Tumblr, which you can find by going to my blog (dannifielding) and looking under the 'drabbles' option on the menu. I'm going to create a page with them all linked on, nice and neat, which should be done in the next couple of days, that I'll chuck up on my profile for better access. But until then, go check out that page!_


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